WCA November 2013

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44 Wire & Cable ASIA – November/December 2013
At the beginning of 2012, the US coal industry had plans
to expand port capacity by an additional 185 million tons.
But those hopes have faded.
American coal exports this year are expected to decline by
roughly five per cent from record exports of 125 million tons
in 2012, and many industry observers look for the decline to
quicken in 2014.
❖ Energy experts project that China, with its increasingly
conservationist energy policies, may no longer be a
net importer of coal by 2015. Accordingly, 2013 is a
‘watershed year for global coal markets,’ according to a
Goldman Sachs report cited by Mr Krauss. “The window
for thermal coal investment is closing.”
American coal companies get the message. Anthony
Yuen, a Citigroup energy analyst, told the Times: “Global
coal prices right now are not supportive of large-scale US
coal exports.”
Automotive
Among younger car shoppers,
‘Buy American’ is not the imperative
it once was
According to the results of a survey conducted by
AutoTrader.com and presented 23rd August at an
Automotive Press Association event in Detroit, only 38 per
cent of millennials (born between 1982 and 2002) say it is
important to them to buy a car assembled in the United
States.
The advisory site for shoppers compared that with 53 per
cent of Generation X (born 1962-1982) and 60 per cent of
baby boomers (the first generation after World War II).
As reported by Detroit Free Press business writer Nathan
Bomey, AutoTrader also said that some 48 per cent of
millennials consider it important that their vehicle reflect
their personality. The personality factor mattered to 38 per
cent of generation X and 34 per cent of baby boomers.
Young millennials said the brands that most fit their
personalities are, beginning with the favourite: Audi, Honda,
Mercedes, BMW and Toyota. Older millennials picked Audi,
Mercedes, Chevrolet, Honda and Toyota.
As to what this means for US car makers, Isabelle Helms,
senior director of research and marketing analytics at
AutoTrader, drew the obvious conclusion. “It is important,”
she told Mr Bomey, “for domestics not to hang their hats on
‘Made in the USA’ to the same extent they did in the past.”
❖ Another problematic finding for American automakers
is that many young car shoppers do not like the current
process for buying a vehicle.
AutoTrader said that about 56 per cent of millennials
would prefer to avoid interacting with a salesperson, an
aversion acknowledged by 49 per cent of Generation X
and 37 per cent of baby boomers.
Only 47 per cent of the younger cohort consider their
dealer to be trustworthy, compared with 64 per cent of
car shoppers aged 35 and up.
Ms Helms said that reaching young people is important
because millennials will account for 40 per cent of car
purchases in the US by 2020.
Traditionally for high-end cars and trucks,
leasing is extended to the less affluent
shopper – and the rewards come fast
Somewhat at variance with the worrying tone of the
previous item, the US auto industry has steadily increased
production throughout the year to meet rising demand;
and it reported another month of double-digit increases
in August.
Sales of 1.5 million vehicles – a 17 per cent gain over the
same month of 2012 – put seasonally adjusted annual
industry sales at a post-recession high of 16.09 million, up
from 14.49 million a year before.
As a possible explanation for the surprisingly strong sales
results, analysts and auto dealers noted a recent trend in
the producers’ use of leasing, traditionally a way of making
high-end cars and trucks more accessible to interested
shoppers daunted by a high sticker price.
Now, with consumer confidence increasing and credit
more readily available, increasingly the strategy is being
extended to moderate-priced vehicles – to good effect.
According to edmunds.com, a resource for car buyers
and enthusiasts, leasing figured in 16 to 20 per cent of
new-car transactions in the US in the years leading up
to the recession, with activity concentrated at the high end.
In 2013, through August, leasing was a factor in 26 per cent
of new-car purchases.
Detroit’s Big Three (General Motors, Ford and Chrysler)
reported August sales increases of 14.7 per cent, 12 per
cent and 11.5 per cent, respectively.
The average monthly lease payment was $408, down from
$416 in 2012, according to Experian Automotive, which
analyses industry data.
In brief . . .
❖ Auto maker Toyota Motor Corp plans to invest more than
$28 million to expand its powertrain operations at two
facilities in the Ann Arbor area of Michigan.
According to the Detroit Free Press, the expansion
announced on 5th September by the Toyota Technical
Center (Ann Arbor) is expected to focus on design,
evaluation, and calibration for new engine and
transmission projects at the Japanese company’s North
American plants.
Dorothy Fabian
Features Editor