Honda CEO: No recession in U.S. auto industry

Honda CEO Takeo Fukui has stated unequivocally that there is no recession in the US auto industry. Just days ago Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn told journalists in Seoul that the US automobile industry is in recession, and high material costs were a major factor. The differing opinions between Honda and Nissan may be because of the market's shift away from SUV's and gas-guzzlers to more economical and fuel efficient vehicles (of which Honda has many, compared to Nissan). This would explain Nissan's research into more fuel efficient vehicles, as we reported on earlier.

According to Automotive News, Fukui admitted that sales of cars in Florida and California had been dropping but was adamant that Honda was experiencing record sales along the East Coast and Midwest and these markets aren't predicted to get smaller anytime soon. In figures, Honda's sales dropped 2.3 percent in January but when put in context of the entire auto market dropping 4.2 percent this figure is more palatable. When asked about increasing incentives programs to sell more cars in 2008, Fukui said that he didn't expect Honda to increase its incentives, stating that "its more important to offer customers good products at the appropriate price range."