'Messy' auto supply industry still attractive

摘要

DETROIT—Billionaire investor Wilbur Ross admits that the U.S. auto supply industry is in a shambles. Ross, who bought into the supplier business last year, ticked off a daunting series of problems facing the industry during a speech at a conference sponsored by the, Detroit branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. "Almost half the 50 largest North American suppliers lost money last year, and few of the others earned as much as 5 percent on sales," he said. Additionally, car sales probably will drop 2 to 4 percent this year. U.S. consumers are spending more than they're saving, but there are signs the "credit binge" is ending. Several years of incentives have sapped demand, Ross said. High fuel prices mean that cars consumers do buy likely will be smaller and less parts-intensive.