>>Ford & GM can't agree on trade or
>>environmental policy.
>
>Doug, do you know the main thrust of this disagreement?
Says the WSJ:
<quote> As trade has grown less contentious, the public and strategic divisions between GM, Ford and Chrysler have widened. In January, while the Big Three, along with international auto makers, were trying to cut an industry deal on tailpipe standards with Northeastern states, Ford made a splash at the Detroit auto show by announcing that its sport-utility vehicles would meet a strict new emissions standard. GM and Chrysler fumed as Ford received good publicity for its "Clean Utility Vehicles."
During a conference call a month later, the AAMA companies again were haggling over whether they should sign on for the strict emissions rule when a Ford executive said the company was about to announce publicly that it would voluntarily comply. The call abruptly ended as GM and Chrysler officials rushed to send out their own press releases. </quote>
On rereading the article, it's clear that it's not trade so much as ownership that tensions turn on - it's national ownership. Two remaining US-owned firms aren't enough to make a trade association, but divisions among the others - nationality, product range, size - make for only shifting coalitions, not a solid bloc of capital.
Doug