limguanengmymasterhero

NEW YORK -- General Motors' bid to sell its "good" parts into a new company and emerge from bankruptcy protection began Tuesday as hundreds of lawyers converged on a Manhattan courthouse.

HSBC Bank International revealed last week that the economic crisis has had a wide impact on expats' financial situations, according to the world's largest survey of expats, Expat Explorer.

Toyota Motor Thailand has announced the appointment of Kyoichi Tanada as president, succeeding Mitsuhiro Sonoda.

While sellers of new and used cars alike struggle, some auto-parts operators are prospering in tough economic times, as drivers strive to keep their cars running longer. Consumers who have financial concerns and can't replace their existing cars are doing everything they can to keep them in order. But the older cars get, the more work they need. As a result, the engine and parts aftermarket and the second-hand parts market is brighter than ever.

Tata Motors Ltd. said on Wednesday its 5-billion-baht ($147 million) project to produce an "eco car" in Thailand by 2012 was still on track. Ajit Venkataraman, chief executive of Tata's Thai unit, dismissed local newspaper reports that the Indian car giant may be wavering on its Thai project.

New model launches are expected to help stabilise local passenger car sales in the third quarter before a recovery in the fourth quarter, the Thailand Automotive Institute said yesterday. While pickup truck sales and exports continued to plunge in May, the decline in passenger car sales was more modest. As a result, overall vehicle production rose 15% last month from April, said Vallop Tiasiri, the institute's president.

(Virus Photo courtesy of For Your Health ) Check out Doc Iain's writeup on Swine Flu.

Congratulations to Continental Automotive for opening their new plant in AMATA CITY. According to MD Thomas Chambers, the company still sees Asia as a growth market for Continental. "We forecast that by 2012, one in two cars of global vehicle production will be produced by Asia. It is undeniable that Thailand's automotive industry is well-established with the one-ton pickup truck as the product champion. We are determined to stay here," said Mr Chambers. Check out the full Bangkok Post article here .

Thailand automotive market: the "Detroit of Asia"? Despite recent economic challenges around the world, Thailand’s burgeoning economy has not lost momentum and the automotive industry continues to grow. In the last decade, a dramatic increase in passenger car and commercial vehicle production has contributed substantially to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) — making automotive the third largest industry in Thailand. You can download the ERNST & YOUNG report here.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Chrysler LLC says it has restarted a small factory that makes the Viper sports car. The Conner Avenue assembly plant in Detroit is the first to begin making vehicles since May 4 when the company shut down all of its plants after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.