Carlos Ghosn adding that this is going well

Global automotive of Paris, which opens today to professionals and Saturday to the public, until 15 October, will be held in a particularly strange atmosphere: the difficulties of the negotiations between General Motors (GM) and the duo Renault-Nissan, which began spreading more and more in the public square, are likely to shadow the good 60 new models that manufacturers must disclose with brilliance during the fortnight.

While a final rupture of talks seemed likely to occur at any time, given the differences that seem to prevail between the experts of the three constructors mandated to explore the interest of an alliance since July, the two CEO, Carlos Ghosn and Rick Wagoner, however chose to avoid direct clash before the media around the world, come to the world. The three groups continue "to explore the opportunities of an industrial alliance" and decided to continue their work "until mid-October, as planned", announced the industrialists, yesterday, at the end of a meeting between the two Presidents. Carlos Ghosn adding that "this is going well."

The bad part case

The case seems yet wrong committed. From the outset, Rick Wagoner began discussions with Renault to his body defending his 10 Kirk Kerkorian shareholder pressure. Last condition posed by the Chairman of GM: an application of financial balance in his favour, according to the "Wall Street Journal". Independently of a negotiation later on financial holdings, the GM staff exchanges, taken by its financial Director, Fritz Henderson, would come to the conclusion synergies enjoyed in alliance would be lower than those returning to Renault-Nissan.

For not to injure its shareholders, GM would be inclined to seek financial compensation of several billion dollars. Hard to swallow by Carlos Ghosn application. If both parties want to term exchange actions, he may respond on the ground of the huge differential in stock capitalization: even without taking into account considerable debts of the Group of Detroit, its market value is now less than half that of a third party to that of Nissan and Renault!

Carlos Ghosn has said outset for several weeks that he wished to seal a grand marriage or anything, that GM negotiators emit signals showing that they have rather the foot on the brake. Example: the two parties are not the same encryption of the savings that they could identify by pooling their global procurement of components. A key issue, given the amounts involved. GM considers indeed that it will benefit from better conditions of purchase that today ' today with Delphi, its first supplier, at the end of its financial reorganization.

Even the threat posed by the Japanese giant Toyota does not appear to be interpreted in the same way, Renault arguing that it is the main enemy of GM, to which must be joining forces to resist, and the American holding for one competitor among others.

New flowering

Next to this clash of titans, new models of the world will have a little trouble to capture the attention of the media. A major auto show but is a means of boosting demand, in a very sluggish European market. Overall sales decreased 4.1 in the first half, after four years in decline over the past six years. Besides a few traditional sedans such as the new Ford Mondeo, the Kia Cee'd and the Toyota Auris, which will replace the Corolla, fires will be hijacked on much more staggered models, like the break of the Dacia Logan, the Citroën C4 Picasso MPV version, two 4 4 "City" designed on the same basis, the Opel Antara and Chevrolet Captiva, or even the new version of the Mini comic in BMW.