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New car registrations dropped 18% in December 2011 compared to the same month in 2010. Part of the reason is a government bonus for scrapping older cars offered in 2010. French car registrations for 2011 were down 2.1% over 2010. French car sales have averaged 2 million in the last few years and France's car manufacturers association expects sales at that level for 2012, which is a contraction of 8-10%. Renault will be affected by lower sales. In the first 3 weeks of Dec. 2011 Renault's direct orders declined by 60% compared to the same period in 2010.

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Fiat shares went up 13% on Jan. 2, 2014, after the agreement to buy the UAW trust fund's 41% stake. Fiat has to pay $1.75 billion to the trust fund, and it is now the most indebted automaker except for Peugeot, according to Citi. With sales slump in Europe and without a siginificant presence in Asia, Fiat still has problems, says Peaple. Yet this is a major step forward for Fiat in diversifying beyond its European base- without Chrysler Fiat's net profit in the first 9 months of 2013 would have been a loss of 729 million euros, in the place of the current net profit of 655 million euros for that period.

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The first signs of a return to growth are seen in the European automobile market. The European Automobile Manufacturers Association reports a 1.7% increase in new passenger car registrations for May compared to April 2013.

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The sharp decline in share prices of GM and Ford since the IPO offering for GM in 2011. Analysts say the shares are pricing in a 15% decline in sales for Europe in 2012.

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Fiat takes full ownership of Chrysler with an agreement reached in Jan. 2014 for the UAW trust fund's 41% stake in Chrysler. Under the terms of the $4.35 billion deal Fiat will pay the UAW retiree health fund $1.75 billion in cash, Chrysler will make a $1.9 billion contribution, and Chrysler will also pay the trust $700 million over 4 annual instalments. Under an agreement shaped by the Obama administration 58.5% stake went to Fiat and the remaining 41.5% to the UAW trust fund. Chrysler repaid government loans early with the success of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Dodge Ram and Dodge Dart models, and the first quarterly profit in 2011. The $1.7 billion Fiat pays for Chrysler under this agreement bringing the total to $3.8 billion, shows the value of the management skills brought by Sergio Marchionne and persistent effort to turn things around at Chrysler since the 2008 financial crisis led to the bankruptcy of Chrysler. In comparison Daimler Benz paid $36 billion for Chrysler in 1998, and $7.4 billion was paid by private equity firm Cerberus Capital for an 80% stake in 2007. It is also a major achievement of the team of managers put together by Fiat's Sergio Marchionne. Chrysler is now the seventh largest car company close to Honda in size, with 4.5 million in global auto sales, according to OICA. Fiat-Chrysler is now a global company with sales worldwide....

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Italian born Canadian Sergio Marchionne, a former tax consultant turned auto executive who joined Fiat in 2004, planned the acquisition of Fiat in 2009. GM's payout to Chrysler following a decision not to acquire Fiat, and the U.S. government's need to merge Chrysler with another auto company after a bailout, gave Marchionne the opportunity to acquire Chrysler on favorable terms. Hard bargaining with the government led to acquiring Chrysler for free, using the $2 billion from GM to show the government that it would make the needed investments to bring Chrysler back from bankruptcy. This decision, the bringing in of outside talent, and the revival of the auto industry following the bailout, has led to the success of Fiat Chrysler.  Sergio Marchionne had the right instincts to persuade the government that Fiat with its small cars including the Fiat 500 was the right company to run Chrysler, and supporting president Obama's fuel efficiency goals gave him the right credentials with the Obama administration. A chain smoker of cigarettes who also gulped down espressos, her was a workaholic sometimes carrying 5 smartphones. He passed away at the age of 66 from health complications. Ironically the Dodge Dart was presented as the car that would get 40 miles per gallon. Other efforts at fuel efficient automobiles have not happened in the way it was envisioned by the Obama administration. The Dart did not become popular. Only the redesigned Fiat made it as a hit in Europe. The plan to import small Fiats to the U.S. remained only on paper. As the auto industry revived Marchionne canceled plans to make nearly all of the Chrysler cars and shifted production to more popular Jeeps and Dodge Ram, a move followed by Ford and GM. Fuel efficiency issues from the bankruptcy period are still alive today with the decision to leave small car manufacturing to Japanese and German carmakers, and the efforts of the Trump administration to turn back the Obama administration fuel efficiency targets.  ...

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U.S. auto sales increase to levels seen before the recession in 2006- with 16.5 million units sold in 2014. Sales increased by 5.9% over 2013, according to Autodata. Fiat Chrysler NV sales reached 2 million units in 2014, for an astounding recovery under Marchionne, close to the 2.4 milllion units sold by Toyota and the 2.5 million units sold by Ford Motor.