MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - U.S. trade negotiators have reduced their demand for regional auto content under a reworked NAFTA trade deal to 75 percent from the 85 percent they had sought, Eduardo Solis, the head of Mexico’s automotive industry association, said on Friday. Eduardo Solis, President of the Mexican Automotive Industry Association (AMIA), speaks during an interview with Reuters in Mexico City, Mexico May 22, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso/File Photo Asked whether reports were true that Washington had scaled back its demand to 75 percent, Solis said: “Yes.” Reporting by Anthony Esposito; Editing by Dave Graham … [Read more...] about U.S. lowers NAFTA regional auto content demand: Mexico auto lobby
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Backlash grows over Sinclair Broadcast Group’s ‘must-run’ conservative content on local TV stations
In 2002, Sinclair tried to launch a national service called "News Central," which gave its stations centrally produced segments from its Hunt Valley, Md., headquarters to run with their local content. The service lasted a few years, but after its shutdown, Sinclair continued to produce segments and right-leaning political commentaries that its stations were required to run. … [Read more...] about Backlash grows over Sinclair Broadcast Group’s ‘must-run’ conservative content on local TV stations
Team Trump Eases Demands on NAFTA’s Regional Auto Content
The United States is softening the contentious automotive content requirement mandates pushed by the Trump administration as part of NAFTA renegotiation talks. While the demand is only one of many asks coming from the U.S., both Canada and Mexico said forcing 85 percent of a vehicle’s overall content to be sourced from the three countries (in order to side-step tariffs) was a nonstarter. Over the past year, the issue became a major sticking point in the trade talks — hindering progress and possibly dooming them to failure. While Trump’s intent was to bolster domestic employment by incentivizing North American parts suppliers, automakers expressed concerns and noted it was often difficult to reach the current threshold of 62.5 percent. The United States has now proposed applying the new content requirement only to major components (like a vehicle’s powertrain) while leaving fasteners (nuts, bolts, etc.) alone. As an automobile is made up of tens of … [Read more...] about Team Trump Eases Demands on NAFTA’s Regional Auto Content
Trump said to soften on NAFTA regional car content
Eric Martin and Josh Wingrove, Bloomberg Published 4:21 p.m. ET April 4, 2018 | Updated 4:21 p.m. ET April 4, 2018 The Trump administration has softened a key NAFTA demand for more North American content in car manufacturing – a potential olive branch on arguably the biggest sticking point as the U.S. pushes to reach a stopgap deal this month, according to three people familiar with the talks. The U.S. proposal would distinguish between different NAFTA car parts by grouping them into five categories, some of which would have a lower requirement for North American content or none at all, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they’re not authorized to discuss the negotiations publicly. While the U.S. had been pushing for 85 percent of all vehicles to be sourced from the three NAFTA countries, its latest proposal would apply that threshold to major components such as transmissions and engines but not to the simplest inputs like nuts and bolts, the … [Read more...] about Trump said to soften on NAFTA regional car content
2018 Hyundai Kona First Drive – Content Comes at a Price
It’s probably a little too on the nose for any automaker to launch a car in the city, state, or region it’s named after, but that didn’t stop Hyundai from bringing media to Hawaii to drive the newest entry into the subcompact crossover class. Hyundai did so not just because of the “synergy” (ugh) between place and name, but because the company wanted to show us scribes how sporty and fun and well-suited to outdoorsy folk the Kona is. Never mind that most compact SUV buyers aren’t hauling long boards – they’re hauling little humans. Every automaker does this — projecting their crossovers as the key to adventure. And I have no doubt that equipped with the correct accessories, the Kona can haul your bikes to the trailhead just fine. But most of these are going to be found in traffic on city streets, just like most of the crossovers buyers will cross-shop against the Kona. The bigger question, then, is where does the Kona fit in a … [Read more...] about 2018 Hyundai Kona First Drive – Content Comes at a Price