GM plans to pull out of Australia, New Zealand and Thailand

General Motors decision to pull out of Australia, New Zealand and Thailand as part of a strategy to exit markets that don't produce adequate returns on investments raised dismay Monday from officials concerned over job losses.

The company said in a statement Sunday that plans to wind down sales, engineering and design operations for its historic Holden brand in Australia and New Zealand in 2021. It also plans to sell its Rayong factory in Thailand to China's Great Wall Motors and withdraw the Chevrolet brand from Thailand by the end of this year.

"This is a very disappointing outcome," said Karen Andrews, Australia's minister for Industry, Science and Technology. She said it was unfortunate both because about 500 workers would lose their jobs, but also because "they only advised the government of this decision just before the announcement."

Dave Smith of the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union also expressed chagrin.

Workers at Holden had thought they'd "been through the worst of it, and that's not the case," Smith said. "For many of them their long-term workers have been very loyal to the company ... they've loved being part of the car industry, and now, it was such an iconic brand coming to an end; it'll mean an end to their jobs."

GM has 828 employees in Australia and New Zealand and another 1,500 in Thailand, the company said.

In Thailand, the decision to sell GM's plant in Rayong, south of Bangkok, may well end up being good news for workers there.

Great Wall Motors, a major maker of sport utility vehicles and pickups, said it intends to expand in Southeast Asia using the plant in Thailand as its base.

"We will also promote the development of the local supply chain, research and development and related industries, plus contribute more to the exchequer of both the local Rayong and Thailand governments," Great Wall's vice president for global strategy, Liu Xiangshang.

Liu said the Thai expansion was part of Great Wall's global push, following the launch of a plant in Tula in Russia in 2019 and plans to acquire GM's Talegaon plant in India.

GM said it had analyzed the business case for future production at the Rayong plant, but low utilization of its capacity and low sales volumes "made continued GM production at the site unsustainable."

GM has struggled in Asia in the past year. Its International Operations, which include China, lost $200 million last year, including $100 million in the fourth quarter.

GM's CEO, Mary Barra, said the company wants to focus on markets where it can drive strong returns, scaling back operations in Australia, New Zealand and Thailand to selling niche specialty vehicles. GM will support its employees and customers in the transition, she said.

GM is making the same moves in Japan, Russia and Europe, where "we don't have significant scale," she said.

"We are pursuing a niche presence by selling profitable high-end imported vehicles supported by a lean GM structure," International Operations Senior Vice President Julian Blissett said in the statement.

GM said it will honor all warranties in the markets, and it will continue to provide service and parts. Local operations also will handle recalls and any safety-related issues, the company said.

The Detroit automaker expects to take $1.1 billion worth of cash and noncash charges this year as it cuts operations in the three countries.

GM has a long history in Australia with the Holden brand, where cars were designed and sold in the U.S. and other markets. The 2008 and 2009 Pontiac G8 muscle car, for instance, was designed as a Holden Commodore and built in Australia. But Holden's market share, which was nearly 22% in 2002, fell to just over 4% last year.

GM President Mark Reuss, who once ran the Australian operations, said the company explored options to continue Holden, "but none could overcome the challenges of the investments needed for the highly fragmented right-hand-drive market, the economics to support growing the brand, and delivering an appropriate return on investment," he said in the statement.

https://japantoday.com/category/busi...d-and-thailand

 

Welcome to the auto industry. Another day, another cutback, another excuse for the cutback. I just set my watch again.

(OK, the Tesla Model 3's assembly-line may be an exception LOL)

 

Wow Australia without Holden doesn't seem right

 

Wasn't just Australia. Here, in the U.S., Holden gave us the Pontiac GTO, the Pontiac G8, the Chevy SS, and, with the Holden Maloo, would have given us a nice Chevy or Pontiac successor to the old Chevy El-Camino had GM management had not dropped the project. True, those vehicles were not big-sellers in the U.S., but they were quite interesting and fun to drive.

 

GTO, G8, SS were all short lived, and the vast majority of people who are not car enthusiasts would have no idea where those cars were derived from. The difference is in the US, GM would tease a model for a year or two then pull it, Holden is almost synonymous with Australia, always been around, so this is very sad news for the Aussies and Kiwis. GM made their bed though when the Commodore went FWD years ago.

 

Australia population less than half of Thailand. NZ pop is tiny, about the same as denmark, only a vast rural country split into two huge islands. Sales into oz and nz are logistically hard for little return. Good move gm.

 

This is a major event Down Under. I've never been anywhere where the rivalry between Ford and GM owners was so intense as Australia. You were either a Ford or Holden fan, you hated the other and whole families were loyal to one brand or the other down the generations and would never consider swopping between the two brands. The Bathurst 500 race was attended by over 200,000 people and became the Ford-Holden show.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-...ivalry/9013842

It really is the end of an era.

 

That's part of what's wrong with today's auto industry.........it's the end of too many "Eras".

 

If this was all I knew about Holden (well--it actually might be...), then I would not be surprised at all that it's being shut down.

 

That's (obviously) only what they offered in the U.S. Other posters have noted the larger and popular line they offered in Australia.

 

Also the beginning of new eras.

 

I think the old eras are better than the new ones. With that said, GM is just showing how undesirable they really are.

 

nostalgia isn't what it used to be. LOL

 

The new eras are just beginning. Give them a chance

 

Like what?