At 02:19 PM 11/4/98 -0500, you wrote: >>>> Ford chief predicts doom - this font is so small that I read it as "Ford thief." Sorry. Ford chief predicts doom - Says 'dogfight' will kill all but six companies (Reuters) The auto industry is in a savage "global dogfight' that will speed consolidation and tumble some companies into failure, says Ford Motor Co. chairman Alex Trotman. In a speech yesterday to business executives, he predicted that of the 40 or so auto companies in existence, only six will survive into the next century, with two based in the United States, two in Europe and two in Japan. Current global overcapacity equal to 19 million vehicles a year will rise to 22 million by 2002, he said. "That's why I've been predicting for several years massive industry consolidation with mergers, acquisitions and outright failures." .... end I would have jumped at Michael's suggestion to discuss overcapacity, but as a non-economist, I'm reduced to little snapshots in the papers, such as this one. Anyone have any broader data??? I'm not an economist, but neither do you have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that the current financial crisis has something to do with the decline in productive investment outlets after the decline of the post war boom, and even if our glorious leaders succeed in managing the current crisis, there's more hard times ahead. Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] & http://clawww.lmu.edu/Departments/ECON/jdevine.html
