QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The confidence that we had going into 2014 got pushed back a couple months, but now we’re going to see it blossom in the spring.”
Jay Morelock, an economist at FTN Financial in New York, on a report Friday that consumer confidence is on the upswing after a tough winter Article, 1D
China auto sales slow, local brands drop
BEIJING - China’s growth in auto sales decelerated further in March, and local brands lost market share in the face of intense foreign competition, an industry group reported Friday.
Sales rose 7.9 percent to 1.7 million vehicles, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
That was down from February’s 11.3 percent growth.
Sales of Chinese domestic brands contracted by 2.3 percent to 672,000 vehicles, the association said. Their market share shrank by 4.1 percentage points from a year earlier to 39.3 percent.
China’s explosive auto sales growth has cooled steadily since peaking above 40 percent in 2009, as its rapid economic expansion slows.
General Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen and other global auto brands are looking to China, the biggest auto market, to drive sales and are spending heavily to suit local tastes. The global majors are reporting steady sales gains, but part of that comes at the expense of smaller Chinese brands.
Total vehicle sales, including trucks and buses, rose 6.6 percent to 2.2 million, the association said.
General Motors Co. said sales of GM-brand vehicles by the company and its Chinese partners rose 19.9 percent to monthly record of 257,770. Ford Motor Co. said sales rose 28 percent to 103,815 vehicles, crossing the 100,000 mark for the first time.
Japan’s Toyota Motor Co. said sales more than doubled from a year earlier, rising 119 percent to 90,400 vehicles. Rival Nissan Motor Co. said sales rose 26 percent to 115,900 vehicles.
South Korea’s Kia Motor Co. reported a 14.2 percent rise in sales to 55,208 vehicles.
Agency closes probe into Ford pickups
DETROIT - U.S. safety regulators have decided against seeking a recall of Ford F-150 pickups after investigating complaints about reduced power in EcoBoost engines.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it closed a probe started in May. It covered nearly 360,000 trucks with 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged engines from the 2011 through 2013 model years.
The agency began investigating after getting complaints that the trucks could lose some of their power during hard acceleration.
Tests by Ford and the government traced the problem to condensation in an air cooler. Water could be pulled into the engine, causing cylinders to misfire.
But the tests showed that trucks with the condition would maintain speed and accelerate.
The agency determined that a Ford Motor Co. service bulletin to dealers took care of the problem, so it’s not pursuing a recall.
The Safety Administration said in documents posted on its website Friday that it received 525 complaints about reduced power, and Ford received 3,731. But the agency said not all the complaints were related to the condensation in the air cooler. Many were linked to faulty ignition coils, spark plugs, the catalytic converter and other problems. The Safety Administration said it has no reports of crashes or injuries because of the problem.
The agency said it will keep monitoring complaints and take further action if needed.
- The Associated Press
Coldwater Creek files for bankruptcy
Coldwater Creek Inc., a women’s clothing retailer that hasn’t posted an annual profit since 2007, filed for bankruptcy protection with a plan to start going-out-of business sales in time for Mother’s Day.
Coldwater, founded as a catalog business 30 years ago, said it intends to start liquidating inventory just before the May 11 holiday, a peak sales period for the retailer.
The company listed assets of $278.5 million and debt of $361.3 million in Chapter 11 papers filed Friday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del.
The chain said revenue peaked at $1.1 billion in 2006.
It expanded from 198 stores in 2005 to 336 locations in 2007 before the global economic downturn stunted its financial success and triggered a series of management changes, according to court filings. Sales at stores open at least a year plunged 17 percent in the quarter that ended Nov. 2.
The company joins women’s clothing chains Dots LLC and Ashley Stewart Holdings Inc. in bankruptcy.
Dots, with 400 stores, shut down after filing in January. Ashley Stewart, with 168 stores in 24 states, sought Chapter 11 protection March 10. A drop in mall traffic also has helped to drive pizza seller Sbarro LLC, toasted sandwich chain Quiznos and the owner of Hot Dog on a Stick to seek court protection since February.
Coldwater said last year that it was exploring strategic alternatives, including a sale. The retailer reached out to more than 75 parties as it sought refinancing or a buyer and “publicly invited strategic alternative proposals of any nature,” Chief Operating Officer James Bell said in a court filing.
The shares have declined 95 percent in 12 months, including a 17 percent drop Thursday. That valued the retailer at $5.8 million.
Coldwater posted losses totaling $59.6 million in the first three quarters of the fiscal year ended Feb. 2, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It had a loss of $81.8 million last year.
Business, Pages 32 on 04/12/2014