Ford Motor (F) has revealed that its sales in China have shot up 79% to 119,338 vehicles in the third quarter of the year. The growth has vaulted an overall sales increase of 78% to 1.33 million vehicles across China .  This was driven by China ’s economic policies to spur auto sales. The Chinese Government halved taxes on purchases of small autos. It is also spending 5 billion yuan ($730 million) on subsidies for purchases of light trucks and minivans in the countryside, where the population density is high.  Considering the first nine months of the year, Ford’s sales grew 32% to 316,639 vehicles. This compared to a 34% rise in sales to 9.66 million vehicles across China , making it the world's top auto market. The U.S. ranked second in terms of sales volume, with the nine months’ sales totaling 7.8 million vehicles. ...

Cummins (CMI) has revealed that it will recall about 270 production employees at its Columbus Midrange Engine Plant (CMEP) in Walesboro, Indiana. A temporary increase in orders for the Dodge Ram turbo diesel pickup truck engines made at the plant has led to the recall. The workers had been laid off or transferred to other Cummins facilities over the last year. Dodge Ram pickup – manufactured by Chrysler – is powered by Cummins’ 6.7-liter turbo diesel engine. The orders have increased as Chrysler seeks to build inventory for its 2010 Dodge Ram pickup. Consequently, Cummins plans to temporarily add a second production shift at CMEP on Oct. 19 that is expected to operate through the end of 2009. The recall will boost the plant’s workforce to 600 hourly workers. The company began production of the 2010 Dodge Ram engines in mid-September with approximately 340 production employees ...

Johnson Controls (JCI) has won a record-breaking $87 million project at Princess Noura bin Abdulraham University, the world's biggest women-only university in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Under the contract, Al Salem Johnson Controls, the company's joint venture in Saudi Arabia, will supply 26 York brand chillers to Princess Noura University.  The Wisconsin-based supplier of automotive interiors, batteries and other control equipment will supply chillers that use HFC-134A refrigerant, which does not contribute to ozone depletion. They are manufactured in San Antonio, Texas.  The York brand is a proven market leader in energy efficiency. Al Salem Johnson Controls will also supply radiators for the chillers, making this one of the company's largest single orders in its history. The company achieved the first and largest-ever chiller order in the world for the Pearl Qatar project. It has also succeeded in winning the Bahrain Bay project.  Johnson Controls ...

Ford Motor (F) has released plans suggesting an intense focus on its operations in China and India. The company looks forward to adding 250,000 units to its annual production capacity, taking both countries into account. Ford Motor has announced the launch of production of its small car, Figo, in India in the first quarter of 2010. The decision was backed by a $500 million investment in the company’s existing Maraimalai Nagar, Chennai, plant for expansion. The company has committed to invest more than $950 million in total in the plant. The expansion will make India one of the company’s strategic production hubs, with output potential doubled to 200,000 vehicles annually. The Chennai plant has already been producing Ford models -- including the Ford Ikon, Ford Fiesta, Ford Fusion and Ford Endeavor -- for the Indian market only. However, Figo -- priced at $10,000 -- will be ...

Ford Motor (F) has released plans suggesting an intense focus on its operations in China and India. The company looks forward to adding 250,000 units to its annual production capacity, taking both the countries into account. Ford Motor has announced the launch of production of its small car, Figo, in India in the first quarter of 2010. The decision was backed by a $500 million investment in the company’s existing Maraimalai Nagar, Chennai, plant for expansion. The company has committed to invest more than $950 million in total in the plant. The expansion will make India one of the company’s strategic production hubs, with output potential doubled to 200,000 vehicles annually. The Chennai plant has already been producing Ford models -- including the Ford Ikon, Ford Fiesta, Ford Fusion and Ford Endeavor -- for the Indian market only. However, Figo -- priced at $10,000 -- will ...

Moody's Investors Service has improved its rating on Ford Motor (F), triggered by intensive restructuring in the company. The agency raised Ford's corporate family rating by two notches to Caa1, though seven steps below investment grade. The agency has also revealed its wish to raise Ford's finance arm – Ford Motor Credit’s senior unsecured rating, now Caa1.  The agency commented that Ford has successfully overcome the period of worst downturn in the industry by establishing a sustainable cost structure. Its ratings upgrade will now affect about $25 billion of debt at the company.  Ford, the only Detroit 3 survivor from bankruptcy in 2009, reported a net income of $2.3 billion or 69 cents per share, after adjusting for special items, for the second quarter of the year. This was well above the Zacks Consensus Estimate loss of 55 cents per share and a net loss of ...

The U.S. Federal Reserve on Thursday said that it has sanctioned $6.5 billion in loans to investors under its Term Asset-backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF). This action follows investors’ application for loans to buy securities backed by auto, credit card and other types of consumer loans, in the seventh round of such funding. The current loan amount is down from $6.9 billion requested in August but up from $5.4 billion in July. Also, it is substantially lower from $11.45 billion in June. The overall decrease in investors' appetite this month for government loans indicates that the investors are not relying much on the Fed for funding to buy these securities. A total of $14.7 billion was borrowed by investors for purchasing eligible asset-backed securities sold by companies including American Express (AXP), Bank of America (BAC), General Electric (GE), Nissan Motor (NSANY) and Ford ...

Ford Motor's (F) Canadian arm will offer customers a rebate of up to C$3,000 ($2,700) for the purchase of a new Ford vehicle in exchange for a 15-year or older vehicle.

The rebate program – Recycle Your Ride – would allow customers to receive C$1,000 for purchase of a new Ford or Lincoln car, C$2,000 for a new sport utility or crossover vehicle and C$3,000 for a new truck or luxury Lincoln. The program will start this Thursday and run for 60 days. If required, it may be extended.

Ford Canada plans to maintain sales momentum through the program. The program is built on the line of the Canadian Government's "Retire Your Ride" program, which has given C$300 to consumers to turn in an old vehicle.

Ford Canada's chief executive, David Mondragon, also strongly supported the similar "Cash for Clunkers" rebate program for fuel-efficient vehicles that generated big sales in the

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The U.S. auto industry showed a 1% sales gain to produce 1.3 million vehicles in August. It was the first annual sales gain since October 2007. Sales of cars and light trucks surged 30% compared to July. The spike in sales was solely attributed to the Cash for Clunkers program launched by the U.S. government in late July. The program allowed consumers to trade in their old gas-guzzling cars and trucks with a mileage of 18 miles per gallon or less for a value of up to $3,500–$4,500.  As many as 690,114 new cars were sold under the program. Toyota (TM), Honda (HMC) and Ford (F) were the largest beneficiaries of the program with their fuel-efficient lineup of vehicles. Toyota Motor sales advanced 6.4% to 225,088 units, largely due to its best-selling model on the Cash for Clunkers buy list – Corolla. Honda ...

Auto-parts maker Johnson Controls Inc. (JCI) is exchanging its 6.5% convertible senior notes due 2012 and its equity units in the form of corporate units to reduce the amount of its outstanding debt and related ongoing interest expense.

As of Jun 30, 2009, Johnson Control had approximately $4.8 billion of outstanding debt, including $450 million of equity units.

Johnson Controls will exchange all of its convertible notes for 89.3855 common shares plus $120 in cash and accrued and unpaid interest per $1,000 of principal notes. The company originally issued $402.5 million of convertible notes.

The company will also exchange up to 8.55 million corporate units, or 95% of its outstanding equity units, for 4.8579 common shares, $6.50 in cash and accrued and unpaid interest on the 11.5% notes due 2042 that make up part of the units.

Soon after Johnson Controls' second-quarter results in July, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services took the

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