The Japanese companies are considering joining forces to survive in a rapidly changing auto industry, but auto history is filled with troubled and failed marriages.
The executive chairman of Ford Motor counsels patience as his company negotiates with the United Automobile Workers union, which has shut three of his company’s plants.
The United Automobile Workers said on Friday it had secured an important concession from General Motors regarding the contracts of workers at battery factories.
Carmakers are anxious to keep costs down as they ramp up electric vehicle manufacturing, while striking workers want to preserve jobs as the industry shifts to batteries.
The union targeted one factory run by General Motors, one by Ford and one by Stellantis. Prolonged walkouts could hurt the U.S. economy and President Biden.
The company bought a shuttered General Motors plant in Ohio but struggled to produce its pickup truck.
The automaker cited a potential problem with the battery pack of the F-150 Lightning but said it was unaware of any incidents “in the field.”
Worry about the carmaker’s sales in the world’s largest car market is one reason the shares have plunged.
Stellantis plans to idle the factory, which makes the Cherokee, as it shifts to electric vehicles. Labor talks and a union election may be affected.
The increase from the same period last year comes as competition grows among automakers producing electric vehicles in the United States.