Honda plant work grows

Honda Motor Co., the first Asian automaker to build vehicles in the United States, boosted its spending to $138 million from a planned $75 million on an expansion of an Ohio engine plant to produce more steel parts on its own.

The investment for the 135,000-square-foot addition to the Anna, Ohio, factory was increased from the initial 2006 plan because higher fuel prices spurred demand for 4-cylinder engines, spokesman Ron Lietzke said in an interview Thursday.

“After seeing the shift to 4-cylinders was going to be bigger than expected, we made an adjustment,” Lietzke said. “Honda needed more steel-parts capacity. It made more sense to bring that capacity to the Anna plant.”

Oct. sales look bad, too

Automotive sales aren’t likely to improve substantially in October or even next year, said Jeffrey Klei, vice president of Continental Corp., even if a bailout package for Wall Street is passed this week by Congress.

Automotive sales in September were the lowest in the United States since February 1993, and the sales decline was widespread, with Toyota Motor Corp.’s U.S. sales down nearly as much as Ford Motor Co.’s sales.

“It’s actually going to get worse before it gets better,” Klei said.

Volvo may cut deeper

Volvo Car Corp., the Swedish carmaker owned by Ford Motor Co., said it can’t rule out more job cuts as the company seeks to trim costs amid a slump in global auto demand.

Source:Freep.com

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