Striking workers, protesting Maruti’s refusal to recognise their union and the growing use of contract workers, ended an eight-day occupation of the plant in north India on Friday night, in line with a court order.

“Production has started in a limited way at the plant in Manesar. To start with, the weld shop has been made operational,” the company said in a statement Monday.

However, workers continued to protest outside the plant and the company said it expected talks between management and the strikers to resume later in the day.

The dispute had brought output at the plant to a total halt.

Maruti, 54.2 percent owned by Suzuki Motor Corp, says the work stoppages have cost the company at least 17.50 billion rupees ($356.5 million) in lost output since June.

India is critical to Suzuki Motor’s fortunes as it is its biggest foreign market.

Maruti makes nearly half the cars sold in the country and is credited with revolutionising transport in India by making affordable cars for a burgeoning middle class. — AFP

Auto production grew from the previous year for the first time in 11 months in August, while vehicle exports for the month posted the first on-year increase in six months.

While rising production shows the progress car makers have made in restoring their operations, it will offer little help for their bottom lines, as the strong yen squeezes the profitability of shipping vehicles from Japan.

Another motive for pessimism, despite the healthier figures, is the likelihood of exports faltering as the debt crisis in Europe and economic uncertainties in the U.S. cloud the outlook for overseas demand.

Production of cars, trucks and buses in Japan increased 1.8% from the previous year to 704,096 in August, while vehicle exports jumped 7.6% to 363,772 vehicles, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said Friday.

The upbeat return to above a pre-disaster level bodes well for Toyota Motor Corp. and other Japanese car makers that are ramping up output to make up for delayed production.

Still, only a few manufacturers are looking to boost exports from Japan, as most auto makers are seeking to raise production overseas to mitigate the impact of the strong yen, which remains near a postwar record high of ¥75.94 against the dollar.

Last month, Honda Motor Co. decided to build a new plant in Mexico to produce compact cars, which tend to have narrower margins, making them less profitable to export from Japan. Nissan Motor Co. also plans to move the production of its Rogue small sport utility vehicle to a plant in Canton, Mississippi, from a factory in Kyushu, Japan.

Despite the increasing reliance on manufacturing abroad, Japanese auto makers have pledged to maintain production in Japan, with many of them arguing that the manufacturing technologies and skills developed at their domestic factories help make their vehicles competitive. — The Wall Street Journal

The Eon will be produced at Hyundai Motor India Ltd.’s factory near the port city of Chennai, the company said, without giving any date for the car’s introduction in the local market.

Hyundai said the car “is targeted at first-time buyers who want to buy a spacious and stylish car that is high on fuel economy.”

The company didn’t disclose the car’s engine capacity or its price, but local media reports have said the Eon will be offered with a 814-cubic-centimeter gasoline engine and cost about 250,000 rupees ($5,125).

Maruti sells the Alto starting at 232,248 rupees at showrooms in New Delhi.

Hyundai said the Eon was developed by combining the efforts of its research and development centers in Namyang in South Korea and the southern Indian city of Hyderabad.

“We are confident that the Eon will set a new benchmark in the Indian market with regard to styling, performance, safety and convenience,” said H.W. Park, managing director and chief executive at Hyundai Motor India.

Hyundai, India’s second-largest carmaker by sales, makes seven passenger car models, including the Santro, i10 and i20 hatchbacks, as well as the Verna and Sonata Transform sedans. — The Wall Street Journal

The Nano, hailed in 2008 as a car that would revolutionise transport in India, has suffered disappointing sales due to safety concerns, production glitches and slowing economic growth.

“A Nano car caught fire on Sunday in New Delhi. We have rushed a team of engineers to investigate the accident. The probe is a time-consuming process,” Tata Motors spokesman Debasis Ray told AFP.

The company would be in touch with the owner of the car, he said.

The Times of India reported that two brothers had managed to escape after the car burst into flames.

Last year, the firm was forced to offer free safety upgrades after several Nanos caught fire in various incidents, but it has always maintained that the car has no safety problems.

The cheapest no-frills Nano model costs about $2,500. — AFP

“Our plan is to make the vehicles people want and value, in China and around the world,” Mulally, 66, said in a Bloomberg Television interview on Sept. 24 in Chongqing, China. “As we move to more electrification you’re going to see more hybrids, plug-in hybrids and all-electric.”

Mulally, who was in China to attend the groundbreaking ceremony of an engine transmission plant at its venture with Changan Automobile Group, didn’t provide a schedule for building electric cars. Rivals Daimler AG (DAI) and General Motors Co. (GM) have announced plans to add alternative-energy vehicles in China as the country, the world’s largest polluter, seeks to reduce emissions. The government aims to have 1 million electric- powered vehicles on the road by 2015, according to the Ministry of Science.

GM on Sept. 20 signed an agreement to develop electric cars in China with its partner SAIC Motor Corp. GM, which plans to introduce the plug-in hybrid Chevrolet Volt in China in the fourth quarter, will not give SAIC or the Chinese government intellectual property for the Volt as part of the agreement, GM Vice Chairman Steve Girsky said.

Ford will also consider introducing its luxury brand Lincoln in China to tap into the growing high-end sedan market, Mulally said. The carmaker currently sells models such as its Mondeo sedan and Focus small cars in the country.

“We have a great luxury brand in Lincoln, which we have recommitted ourselves to,” he said. “There’s going to be tremendous pull from China to have access to these great vehicles.”

Additional Models

Ford is spending $1.6 billion to build four factories in China, where it plans to triple its lineup by offering 15 models by mid-decade. The U.S. carmaker, dependent on the U.S. and Europe for most sales and profits, had 2.7 percent of the passenger-vehicle market in China through June, according to J.D. Power & Associates, while GM controls 10 percent.

China’s demand for luxury cars will grow about 35 percent this year, analysts at J.D. Power forecast. This compares with a 5 percent increase for overall auto sales as predicted by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Expansion in Asia is part of Mulally’s wider plan to boost annual global sales by 50 percent to 8 million vehicles by 2015. Ford’s China sales have risen 11 percent this year to 341,746 units, the company said on Sept. 6.

Overall vehicle sales in China reached 18.06 million units last year, boosted by government tax breaks and rural subsidies.

Delivery Slowdown

Ford is encountering pricing pressure in China as the auto market there slows, Joe Hinrichs, group vice president and Asia chief, said on Aug. 10. Overall deliveries in China are forecast to slow this year from the 32 percent gain in 2010, after the government removed sales-tax breaks in January and the central bank raised interest rates five times since October.

“China has a very good plan to have sustainable growth, to manage the inflation as well as the economic activity and automobile purchases move along with that,” Mulally said. “So, even though it’s lower than the previous year, it’s a lot more sustainable for the long term.” — Bloomberg

Nissan’s October-December net profit totaled 80.07 billion yen ($976.4 million), up from 44.97 billion yen a year earlier. Sales for its fiscal third quarter rose 5.3 percent to 2.103 trillion yen ($25.6 billion).

Nissan Motor Co., which became Japan’s No. 2 automaker last year, overtaking Honda Motor Co., remained upbeat after the better-than-expected performance.

The maker of the Leaf electric car, March subcompact and Infiniti luxury models now expects 315 billion yen ($3.8 billion) in profit for the year through March. That would mark a more than sevenfold surge from the previous fiscal year.

Yokohama-based Nissan had previously forecast an annual profit of 270 billion yen ($3.3 billion).

“Our financial results are evidence that Nissan continues to deliver solid performance,” said Nissan President and Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn.

The good news for Nissan came from its aggressive push for growth in fast-growing markets such as India and China. But it was also able to boost sales in more established markets like North America and Europe. Only Japan proved to be a weak spot.

Ghosn acknowledged rising material costs and a strong yen, which erodes the value of overseas earnings for Japanese exporters, remained risks in the months ahead.

Nissan raised its vehicle sales forecast for the full year to 4.165 million vehicles from 4.1 million vehicles. The latest forecast would mark a 19 percent increase from 3.5 million the previous fiscal year.

Nissan — 43 percent owned by its 12-year alliance partner Renault SA of France — also raised its sales forecast for the fiscal year to 8.8 trillion yen ($107.3 billion) from 8.77 trillion yen ($107 billion), and higher than the 7.5 trillion yen reported in the previous year.

“We will continue to deliver good results while remaining focused on our strategies to pursue profitable growth,” said Ghosn, also chief executive at Renault.

For the latest quarter, Nissan sales improved in almost all major regions, except for Japan, where the end of government-backed incentives for green cars crimped sales.

The fall in Japan sales as well as an unfavorable exchange rate were partly behind Nissan’s October-December operating profit falling 15 percent. The dollar now trades at about 82 yen, down from about 90 yen a year ago. — AP

GM said Wednesday that its sales in China in January rose 22.3 percent from a year earlier, a much smaller increase than the 97 percent growth seen in January 2010, when sales totaled 219,192 vehicles.

The company estimates its market share in China at 14.7 percent.

GM sold more cars and trucks in China last year than it did in the U.S. for the first time in the company’s 102-year history. An expansion of sales into provincial cities helped the company sell 2.35 million vehicles there in 2010, up 29 percent.

But even that fast growth lagged the market, which expanded by a third to exceed 18 million vehicles sold. Sales of passenger cars also rose by a third, to 13.7 million vehicles.

Car sales have surged in China over the past two years after the government cut sales taxes and offered subsidies to buyers of smaller, fuel-efficient vehicles. A move by Beijing to counter traffic problems by hiking license plate fees prompted many car buyers to rush into showrooms before the change took effect.

That policy change, plus the much larger base of total sales, has prompted analysts to forecast that sales growth will slow somewhat this year. But double-digit income growth appears to still be spurring sales across the country, as increasingly affluent families either buy their first cars or upgrade to roomier vehicles.

Shanghai GM, the company’s China flagship venture, sold 131,944 cars in January, up 46 percent from a year earlier, while sales of minivehicles climbed 10.6 percent to 132,658. The company also sold 3,334 light-duty commercial vehicles through its joint venture with state-owned automaker FAW. — AP

The world’s biggest automaker welcomed the findings as confirming the reliability of its cars.

Toyota Motor Corp. stock finished at 3,670 yen ($45) on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, its highest close since April 30, buoyed by the results of the 10-month investigation. Overnight on Wall Street, Toyota gained by more than 4 percent to close at $88.57.

Also a perk for the shares was Toyota’s announcement Tuesday that it had raised its full-year earnings and sales forecasts because of booming sales in China and other high-growth markets.

After recalling more than 12 million vehicles around the world for a range of defects since late 2009, the big lingering question was whether there was a problem with the electronic systems in Toyota cars.

That would signal a huge problem, possibly resulting in additional massive recalls, as such systems are in every Toyota vehicle. It would further shatter the once sterling image for quality production that Toyota had boasted for decades.

“We believe that the results of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s investigation confirms the reliability of our electronic throttle control systems,” Toyota said in a statement. “We intend to continue to listen to our customers even closer and to offer not only safe vehicles but vehicles that provide peace of mind.”

Toyota executives have repeatedly said they have tested the vehicles many times, trying to find possible electronic problems, and have never found any.

In Washington, the Department of Transportation said its investigation with NASA found that electronic flaws weren’t to blame for the reports of sudden unintended acceleration that led to massive Toyota recalls.

Some of the cases could have been caused by mechanical defects — sticking accelerator pedals and gas pedals that can become trapped in floor mats — that have been dealt with in recalls, it said.

Some of the cases may have been caused by driver errors, such as hitting on the gas when they meant to brake, it said.

“We feel that Toyota vehicles are safe to drive,” said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

Toyota has promised to beef up quality controls and be quicker in responding to consumer complaints. But analysts say it is likely to take some years before Toyota can hope to fully win back the trust of American buyers.

Toyota may still be held liable in class-action lawsuits in the U.S. because accidents could have been caused by the mechanical problems that the study has found, and doubts can continue to be raised about electronic problems.

Toyota paid the U.S. government a record $48.8 million in fines for its handling of three recalls.

Still, Toyota is on a roll in markets outside the U.S. like Asia, South America and Africa, where the number of vehicles sold is still relatively small but growth potential is huge.

Toyota raised its projection for global vehicle sales Tuesday to 7.48 million vehicles in the year through March, up from an earlier forecast of 7.1 million vehicles, and marking a 3 percent increase from 7.24 million in the previous fiscal year. — AP

The Japanese automaker said Thursday it booked a quarterly net loss of 2.67 billion yen ($32.7 million). It had net profit of 4.42 billion yen a year earlier.

Revenue inched up 0.5 percent to 560.24 billion yen ($6.9 billion) while operating profit slid 90 percent to 1.05 billion yen ($12.9 million).

Demand for cars in Japan fell sharply in the quarter after government subsidies for green car purchases expired, Mazda said. It also cited foreign exchange losses and higher sales costs.

The Hiroshima-based car maker said it is implementing steps to boost profitability across the company, including expanding sales in China, Thailand and other emerging markets.

Mazda, whose models include the Miata roadster and RX-8 sportscar, is a relatively small player in the auto industry, with a 5 percent market share in Japan and a 2 percent share in the U.S.

In December, Ford cut its stake in Mazda from 11 percent to 3.5 percent, marking a symbolic shift in a longtime U.S.-Japan auto alliance.

In contrast to bigger rivals such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co., Mazda is taking a slower path when it comes to hybrid and electric cars. It has high hopes for its next-generation gasoline and diesel engines that feature significantly improved fuel efficiency. The technology will make its debut this year in the Demio, which can reach 30 kilometers per liter (75 miles per gallon).

Mazda left its outlook for the year ending March 2011 unchanged. It continues to forecast net profit of 6 billion yen on revenue of 2.3 trillion yen.

The company reported earnings after financial markets closed. In trading Thursday, Mazda’s shares fell 2.5 percent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, worse than the Nikkei 225 stock average’s 0.3 percent decline.

Mazda bases its earnings on Japanese accounting standards. — AP