Commodity Trading on the International Market-Small cars a hot item |06 June 2008

The first four months of car sales this year have been compared to the first four months of sales last year. Two things are immediately obvious.

First—they stink. Overall sales dropped 7.6 per cent over, according to data from industry tracker Power Information Network (PIN).

Second – it helps a lot if you make really little cars. Sales of the smallest compact cars – vehicles like the Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris – are up 37 per cent, according to PIN, for the biggest increase of any industry segment. Sales of slightly larger compact cars, like the Ford Focus and Toyota Corolla, are up too, as are sales of compact crossover SUVs, a market segment that’s seen a rush of new entries.

If you exclude high-priced or luxury vehicles, which cost a lot and have low sales volume, the evidence shows what most Americans are looking for now – and that’s about everything: low price, excellent fuel economy and loads of utility.

 
General Motors: Trucks out, cars in

Vehicle maker General Motors of the United States announced plans Tuesday to shut four truck and SUV plants that employ thousands of workers. It also said high gas prices are here to stay - and, with them, consumers' growing preference for more fuel-efficient vehicles.

At a news conference in Wilmington, Delaware, GM Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner announced plans to roll out more fuel-efficient vehicles, including approval to start the production process on a vehicle that can run gas-free for trips up to 40 miles.

But the plant-closing plans are a stunning admission from the nation's largest automaker that its long dependence on large SUVs and pickups is no longer a viable strategy for a company struggling to end losses from its North American operations.

The plants to be closed include two U.S. facilities: The Moraine, Ohio plant that builds midsize SUVs, such as the Chevrolet Trailblazer and GMC Envoy; and the Janesville, Wisconsin, assembly line that builds large SUVs such as the Chevy Tahoe and Suburban and GMC Yukon.

In addition, it plans to close a pickup plant in Oshawa, Canada, and a truck plant in Toluca, Mexico.

The Mexican plant that builds medium-duty trucks sold to businesses rather than consumers will close later this year. The other plants will close in 2009 and 2010, with sooner closings possible if sales do not improve. Each U.S. plant has about 2,500 employees.

The company said it believes that high oil and gasoline prices will be the norm, and that prices are likely to go higher as a result of strong global demand for oil.

"These higher gasoline prices are changing consumer behavior and rapidly," said Wagoner. "We don't think this is a temporary spike or shift. We think it is permanent."

Wagoner also said GM is looking at possibly selling its Hummer unit as part of a strategic review of the SUV brand based on military vehicles. The Hummer H3 mid-size SUV gets about 13 to 14 miles per gallon in city driving in the most recent EPA ratings. The H1 and H2 are larger vehicles on which EPA does not give mileage estimates.
 
The brand has become the symbol to many members of the public of a gas-guzzling large U.S. vehicle.

He also announced that GM has approved production of the Chevrolet Volt, a so-called plug-in hybrid vehicle that can run about 40 miles without any use of gasoline. The Volt will be built in GM's Hamtramck, Michigan, plant and is due in showrooms by the end of 2010.

"We believe it's the biggest step yet in our industry's move away from its historic, nearly complete reliance upon petroleum to power vehicles," he said. "We believe the Volt is an important investment for the future of our company and our shareholders."

Ahead of the rollout of that new model, GM plans to increase production of some more fuel-efficient car models. It's adding a third shift at its Orion, Michigan , plant to build more of the Chevy Malibu and Pontiac G6 models, as well as a third shift at a Lordstown, Ohio, plant that builds the compact Chevrolet Cobalt and Pontiac G5 models.

It also plans a more fuel-efficient gasoline engine for its small car models that will get about 9 miles per gallon more than current GM engines in the segment.

The plans were announced ahead of GM's annual meeting Tuesday in Wilmington. They followed similar plans unveiled last month by rival Ford Motor, although Ford did not give details of plant closing plans.

Commodity briefs from around the world

• United States maize yields hit by late planting and the weather

• Warm, wet weather affects quality of Ukraine wheat

• Rains come to the rescue of Australia’s wheat crop

• India’s domestic wheat procurement helps loosen global prices

• United Arab Emirates gifts Syria 500,000 tonnes of wheat in act of solidarity

• Suedzucker reaches sugar import deal with Mauritius

• Biofuel group urges world leaders to avoid hasty action

National Statistics Bureau
 
Seychelles crop production figures
 
The National Statistics Bureau have published the latest production figures. For the purpose of this page, the figures for local production of copra, cinnamon and green tea leaves are reproduced.

According to the Statistical Bulletin Production Indicators No 2 of 2008 six tonnes of copra were produced in the first quarter of 2008, 18 tonnes of cinnamon delivered to the port warehouse, and 48 tonnes of green tea leaves.
 
The total production of copra in 2005 was 158 tonnes, 253 tonnes in 2006 and 41 tonnes in 2007.

Cinnamon bark delivery amounted to 10 tonnes in 2005, 23 tonnes in 2006, 63 tonnes in 2007.

Tea leaves production was 219 tonnes in 2005, 189 tonnes in 2006, and 222 tonnes in 2007.

Fuel prices

Seychelles Nation could not get the latest quotation in prices of petroleum products yesterday, which was a public holiday.

The c.i.f (cost, insurance, freight) is an indication of the prices of landing a litre of fuel in Port Victoria, as quoted by agencies overseas.

The prices fluctuate on a daily basis.

C.I.F. prices in the Seychelles Nation are those normally received on Thursdays.