US manufacturing conditions are attractive to European Manufacturers
The latest cheap manufacturing site for European companies is not in Asia or eastern Europe but the U.S
As summarized in the SME newsletter on September 8, 2008:
The Financial Times (9/8, Milne) reports, "The latest cheap manufacturing site for European companies is not in Asia or eastern Europe but the U.S.," according to "top executives from some of the continent's biggest companies." They say that "the reason is less the level of the dollar, which remains relatively low in spite of the euro's recent plunge, but rather the huge level of incentives some U.S. states are offering companies to set up factories in their region." For example, Tennessee "has just disclosed that it agreed to give German carmaker Volkswagen $577 million in incentives for its $1 billion plant in Chattanooga." Also, the German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp "is receiving more than $811 million to build a new steel mill in Alabama." The industrial group "turned down even more from Louisiana, which reportedly offered as much as $2 billion, as well as an additional $900 million in cheap debt from Alabama, which it declined as it wished to remain debt-free." Additionally, a Volkswagen "official suggested the U.S. also had a competitive advantage because European Union state aid rules made support for factories difficult."
Read the full article here
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The Financial Times (9/8, Milne) reports, "The latest cheap manufacturing site for European companies is not in Asia or eastern Europe but the U.S.," according to "top executives from some of the continent's biggest companies." They say that "the reason is less the level of the dollar, which remains relatively low in spite of the euro's recent plunge, but rather the huge level of incentives some U.S. states are offering companies to set up factories in their region." For example, Tennessee "has just disclosed that it agreed to give German carmaker Volkswagen $577 million in incentives for its $1 billion plant in Chattanooga." Also, the German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp "is receiving more than $811 million to build a new steel mill in Alabama." The industrial group "turned down even more from Louisiana, which reportedly offered as much as $2 billion, as well as an additional $900 million in cheap debt from Alabama, which it declined as it wished to remain debt-free." Additionally, a Volkswagen "official suggested the U.S. also had a competitive advantage because European Union state aid rules made support for factories difficult."
Read the full article here
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09/08/08 9:22 am
Subcategory: Market