Reuters — About 5,000 General Motors salaried workers took buyouts to leave the company, putting the company well on the way to hitting a US$2 billion cost-cutting target, the automaker’s chief financial officer said Tuesday. GM shares were trading down nearly two per cent at midday, even though CFO Paul Jacobson said demand for GM’s […] Read more

GM buyouts cut 5,000 jobs, CFO says
Not much more room seen to raise prices

CNH to buy Outback Guidance’s parent firm
Case IH, New Holland maker to pay US$175 million for Hemisphere
CNH Industrial, parent of the Case IH. New Holland, Steyr and Flexi-Coil farm equipment brands, has signed a cash deal to buy satellite positioning tech firm Hemisphere GNSS, parent of the Outback Guidance aftermarket GPS, precision ag and autosteer business. CNH announced Thursday it will pay $175 million for Hemisphere, which has been owned since […] Read more

Ford hikes electric F-150’s price again to battle high costs
Reuters — Ford Motor Co. has raised the base price of its popular F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck again, the automaker’s website showed on Thursday, the latest in a series of price hikes aimed at offsetting high costs. The base variant of Ford’s electric F-150 truck now starts at $59,974, excluding shipping and taxes, up […] Read more

Manitoba Deere dealer expands westward reach
Enns Bros. to buy Shoal Lake's S.H. Dayton
A major dealer of John Deere equipment in Manitoba is extending its catchment in the province’s west to include a long-established Deere shop. Winnipeg-based Enns Bros. announced Friday it has a deal in place to buy the assets of S.H. Dayton Ltd., a Deere equipment dealership at Shoal Lake, about 100 km northwest of Brandon. […] Read more

GM’s truck production cut signals a turn in U.S. auto sales
Company to idle Indiana plant for two weeks
Detroit | Reuters — New vehicle sales in the United States are expected to increase in February, but the decision by General Motors to cut production of large pickup trucks at a U.S. plant points to new challenges for Detroit’s automakers. The major Detroit pickup truck brands are sitting on growing inventories of unsold vehicles, […] Read more

CNH sees headwinds easing in 2023 after strong fourth-quarter results
Long-running strikes end at two CNH plants in U.S.
Reuters — CNH Industrial said on Thursday its 2023 net sales of industrial activities would grow by between six and 10 per cent, after the group posted stronger-than-expected results in the last quarter of 2022. The industry faced several headwinds in 2022, including a choppy supply chain and inflation, but late in the year these […] Read more

Deere strikes right to repair deal with American Farm Bureau
Agreement pledges ‘fair and reasonable access’ to codes, data, manuals and diagnostic tools
Reading Time: 2 minutes A deal between the American Farm Bureau Federation and Deere and Co. will ensure farmers have the right to repair their own equipment or go to an independent technician, says the farm group. “This will enable you and your independent mechanics to identify and fix problems,” said Zippy Duvall, president of the farm bureau, which […] Read more

Ritchie Bros. raises cash payout in bid for IAA
Activist investor Starboard Value buys into Ritchie
Reuters — Canada’s Ritchie Bros. on Monday sweetened the cash component of its buyout offer for IAA Inc. by 28 per cent, valuing the U.S. auto retailer at US$5.94 billion, and also secured the backing of a key IAA shareholder which had questioned the initial offer. The latest cash-and-stock offer at $44.40 per share, will […] Read more

China driving crude oil price increases
Bulls on crude oil expect a 'very shallow' recession
MarketsFarm — China has largely been behind the current upticks in global crude oil prices, according to Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis for Oil Price Information Services in Lakewood, NJ. He suggested that China’s economy will begin to pick up steam in 2023 after the government loosened its super-tight COVID-19 restrictions. “You can […] Read more

CNH workers at two U.S. plants reject proposed contract
Plants' workers on strike since May
Racine | Reuters — Members of two local unions that have been on strike since May at CNH Industrial factories in Wisconsin and Iowa on Saturday voted down a tentative labour contract, the United Auto Workers union said. The union did not disclose how many workers at the two plants rejected the four-year deal, which […] Read more