In a statement released later Sunday, American Axle said the UAW rejected its request that a federal mediator assist in the negotiations.”AAM had hoped that the involvement of an impartial third party at the bargaining table could assist both sides. … AAM was disappointed in the UAW’s decision,” the statement said.UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said [...]

TORONTO, March 27 (Reuters) - Automobile production in
emerging markets is set to outpace output in North America for
the first time this year and the Canadian auto parts industry
must adapt to the new reality, a study released by Scotia
Economics on Thursday says.
Combined vehicle assembly capacity in the BRIC nations,
Brazil, Russia, [...]

(Adds detail, background, adds attribution)
DETROIT, March 4 (Reuters) - TRW Automotive Holdings Corp
(TRW.N: Quote, Profile, Research) reached a tentative agreement on Tuesday with the
Canadian Auto Workers, ending a six-day-old strike that had
idled a Chrysler minivan plant in Ontario.
The union and the auto parts supplier confirmed a deal had
been [...]

NEW YORK%26So the Fed’s interest rate cuts were supposed to make borrowing easier, right? If only that were so. Instead, jumbo mortgage rates are higher now than they were when the Fed began taking monetary action in September and have even shot up since the central bank’s [...]

U.S. stock indexes tumbled Friday afternoon as a modest morning rally gave way to a retailer’s prediction of weak first quarter sales.
J.C. Penny’s statements took their toll on major market boards, analysts said.
The Dow Jones industrial fell 86.06 points by close Friday, off 0.7 percent to 12,216.40.
The Standard and Poor’s 500 index lost 10.54 points [...]

Tuesday, March 25, 2008 10:14:27 PM - Japan’s February trade surplus increased 0.9 percent over one year earlier, according to data released Wednesday by the Finance Ministry.
The increase was the first in four months, but came in below economists’ forecasts.
The February surplus increased to 970 billion yen (US$9.69 billion), compared to analysts’ estimates of a [...]

(Adds analysts’ remarks, byline, details)
By David Bailey
CHICAGO, Feb 26 (Reuters) - AutoZone Inc (AZO.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the
largest U.S. auto parts retail chain, posted
better-than-expected quarterly earnings on Tuesday, helped by
improved profit margins and sales to the commercial sector.
AutoZone, which does not release formal earnings forecasts,
said it remains [...]

(Adds details on revenue, outlook, background)
DETROIT, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Auto parts maker Lear Corp
(LEA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) posted a quarterly profit on Thursday, reversing a
year-earlier loss, supported by strength in its business
outside North America.
Lear reported net income of $27 million, or 34 cents per
share, for the fourth [...]

SHANGHAI, March 12 (Reuters) - Dongfeng Motor Group Co’s
(0489.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) vehicle sales rose more than one-fifth in February from
a year earlier, beating 19.21 percent overall growth in the
world’s second-largest auto market.
Dongfeng, China’s third-largest automaker, sold 66,360
vehicles in February, up 22.96 percent from a year earlier, it
said in [...]

SHANGHAI/HONGKONG (Reuters) - European auto maker Volkswagen AG (VOWG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Monday it is building a new gearbox plant in northeast China to supply its local car manufacturing joint ventures.
The facility, based in the city of Dalian and expected to start operation in 2010, will mainly supply its [...]