In a statement, the Holden unit of General Motors Co announced its decision to stop production of cars in Australia by the end of 2017. According to a Bloomberg report, GM will be the second automaker who had announced its exit in Oceania this year due to a strong domestic currency and high production costs.
Hours after Holden announced the exit of its chief executive officer manu, the statement released by GM's domestic unit said around 2,900 of its employees will be losing their jobs in its plants.
Akerson said in a statement, "The decision to end manufacturing in Australia reflects the perfect storm of negative influences the automotive industry faces in the country, including the sustained strength of the Australian dollar, high cost of production, small domestic market and arguably the most competitive and fragmented auto market in the world."
GM, Ford and Toyota Motor Corp's domestic automaking operations had been affected by the sharp surge of the Australian dollar, which climbed 50% against the US dollar from the years 2009 to 2012. This, said the news agency, had made Australian exports uncompetitive and inadvertently made imports more appealing. The coalition government of Prime Minister Tony Abbott is said to be shearing off A$500 million or USD457 million in car industry subsidies by year 2015, Bloomberg said in its report.
Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union's vehicles division head Dave Smith said Holden's decision to halt its domestic operations had sealed the fate of the car industry in the Oceanic region, and that Toyota will be the next one to suffer.
Smith said, "All of the manufacturing will go."
On the other hand, GM added that it will still have a presence in Australia, which includes a parts distribution center, design studio and a national sales company. GM said it is expecting to record $400 million to $600 million in pre-tax charges in its fourth quarter this year due to its decision to halt auto production.
Acting Prime Minister Warren Truss told parliament in Canberra today, ""We regret the fact that GM is to phase down its operations in the country. Holden has been an iconic national brand for Australians, a part of our heritage."
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