GM plant could boost Mich. township
General Motors is expected to announce that it's selected a Pontiac plant in Orion township, Mich. for the production of a new subcompact car. Jeremy Hobson explores how this will help job preservation and the local economy.
More on Jobs, Auto Industry
TEXT OF STORY
Steve Chiotakis: Seems like the state of Michigan's been hammered lately. Two of three carmakers got to know bankruptcy really well. And it's unemployment rate is the highest in the nation. Well there's this morsel: General Motors is expected to announce this morning: General Motors is expected to announce that it's selected a Pontiac plant in Orion township, Mich. for the production of a new subcompact car. Marketplace's Jeremy Hobson reports.
Jeremy Hobson: The Orion plant was in competition with factories in Wisconsin and Tennessee. A high-stakes competition at that, according to auto industry analyst Dave Sedgwick:
Dave Sedgwick: An assembly plant for any region is a tremendous boost for the economy. Because you're not just creating jobs in the assembly plant itself -- it creates jobs among the suppliers.
Suppliers who will have to locate just a few hours drive away. Better yet, Sedgwick says, once the economy rebounds and fuel prices head back up, a plant making subcompacts will be in a strong position. He says just look what happened when gas prices breached $3.50 a gallon last year.
Sedgwick: Sales of big trucks completely collapsed, and sales of small cars skyrocketed.
Sedgwick says for the moment, the plant will do more job saving than job creating in a state with an unemployment above 14 percent.
In New York, I'm Jeremy Hobson for Marketplace.
Comments
Comment | Refresh
From detroit, MI, 07/01/2009
Pray July 10th comes and goes with no news on GM. After this date, GM will be able to file a non-government bankruptcy.
Post a Comment: Please be civil, brief and relevant.
Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments. All comments are moderated. Marketplace reserves the right to edit any comments on this site and to read them on the air if they are extra-interesting. Please read the Comment Guidelines before posting.
You must be 13 or over to submit information to American Public Media. The information entered into this form will not be used to send unsolicited email and will not be sold to a third party. For more information see Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.