hmm… Should I Buy That New Car?
Let’s start off with a good reason to buy a car now.
The prices couldn’t get any better…
Grim CIBC auto report seen as ‘alarmist’
An economic report that warns the U.S. automobile market will shrink to about half its former size has been fobbed off as ‘alarmist’ by a leading industry consultant.
The report, written by CIBC World Markets Chief Economist Jeff Rubin, warns the U.S. auto industry will undergo a massive correction that will yank 25 million cars off American roads over the next five years and kill 200,000 more jobs as half the country’s 51 auto plants are permanently shut down.
“Just like U.S. housing sales and starts have fallen to levels with no modern precedent, the drop in U.S. vehicle sales and production should be just as dramatic,” says Mr. Rubin’s report. “Except in this case, long-term changes in the way Americans drive will mean that the good times for the auto industry are never coming back.”
But, on the other hand…
TSX down 49% from last summer’s peak:
… shed 435.51 points or 5.36% to close at 7687.51 today
Loonie hits three-month low on oil, risk aversion:
The currency closed at $1.2914 to the U.S. dollar, or 77.44 U.S. cents. It hit a three-month low of $1.2918 to the U.S. dollar, or 77.41 U.S. cents, late on Monday afternoon.
Oil drops 10% as economic gloom outweighs OPEC:
Oil prices dropped 10% to US$40 a barrel on Monday as a deteriorating world economy threatened to cut further into fuel consumption, outweighing OPEC’s strong compliance with supply curbs.
Canadian economy shrank 3.4% in fourth quarter:
Canada’s economy shrank at an annual pace of 3.4% in the fourth quarter of 2008, Statistic Canada reported Monday, as the global slowdown pulled the country into its worst downturn since the early 1990s. Gross domestic product fell 1% in December from the previous month.
But wait, there’s hope…
All eyes on Bank of Canada for anticipated rate cut:
Canadians can expect interest rates to be cut to a record low tomorrow following what is expected to be a report of a sharp drop in economic growth this morning.
What to do, what to do… as if you needed a reason to stay in bed tomorrow.
photo credit: Jim Frazier
