Recession letting up, say manufacturers
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1E RECESSION has bottomed out at last and there are signs of iprovement on the horizon, according to at least three major :hide manufacturers.
At the Frankfurt show last eek Ford, Mercedes-Benz and ECO management said that :mend had increased during e last three months and they :pected the trend to accelerate the next three. However, none oked for a dramatic improveent until the end of 1982. Dr Giovanni Brasca of IVECO told CM that a rough survey of vehicles on the road had suggested that more goods were being moved, and this view was backed up by the company's marketing director, David Gill.
Professor Werner Breitscherdt of Daimler-Benz warned European governments against delaying motorway construction since an increase in traffic was in evidence now. Daimler-Benz is now increasing its workforce by over 2,500, and has maintained a full-working week throughout the recession.
The high level of employment has been used to meet the demands of D-B's non-European market, it is claimed.
IVECO managing director Giorgio Manina, said that his company will return to profitability this year. Only Unic, the French-based light-vehicle company, will remain in the red at the same level as 1980 — the loss for this year is estimated at £2m.
IVECO is to acquire three Fiat companies before the end of 1981. They are the diesel engine company, a fork lift company, and an engine and component sales company. In addition, IVECO will open a new assembly plant in Libya in October and is now completing plans for a similar plant in Nigeria.
While not all manufacturers were as confident in their opinions, all were, however, cautiously optimistic that the worst was now over.