Mega-Supplier Visteon Fading
February 27, 2009
With February auto sales expected to once again be precipitously low and the nation's
economy still roiling, automotive supplier giant Visteon Corp. appears to be sliding toward bankruptcy.
The fall could cause more turmoil for the fragile Detroit automakers, all of which depend on Visteon and a number of similar mega-suppliers for a heavy proportion of their auto parts and major sub-assemblies.
Visteon's tumble will disproportionately affect Ford Motor Co., which formerly owned Visteon's manufacturing plants and operations until Visteon was spun off in 2000 and remains closely tied.
Visteon cut 27 percent of its manufacturing jobs last year, but the company continues to lose money and it has been speculated it will not be able to make a large debt repayment scheduled in March.
The Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association, which represents Visteon and numerous auto suppliers, recently asked the U.S. Deptartment of Treasury for $18.5 billion in government-backed loans, which the Treasury Department reportedly is strongly considering as market conditions continue to work against the automakers and their suppliers.
Posted by Michelle Krebs at 3:50 AM under Business , Companies , Ford | Comments (0) | digg this | Seed Newsvine
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