Ford has released their P&L statement for 2008 and it is Unpretty, as TLC would say. They have closed the books on a brutal year that saw the company lose a record $14.6 billion. It took Ford 105 years to get to this point. At this rate, Ford will have to ask for government assistance to get through these abysmal economic times. The real question is, "Does Ford have a plan that will help them succeed in these difficult times and ride out the storm?" Are they going to be able to survive and bring to market vehicles that the public wants? They do have a great product in the Ford Fusion so hopefully the auto icon will make it.
Now, let's look at the flip side of this coin, namely the big oil company, Exxon Mobil. Because of the outrageous gas and oil prices we saw in the spring and summer of last year, Exxon was able to post record profits, to the tune of $45.2 billion. These numbers are hard to comprehend and can only be dwarfed by the US Government and their economic stimulus packages and banking bailouts. What will these big oil companies do if the automakers fail? Isn't it in their best interest to see major auto manufacturer's succeed?
Here's a good idea; Let's have Big Oil donate half of their enormous profits directly to the auto manufacturers. This way, the US citizen does not have to bear the brunt of the bailout and the oil companies can do something constructive with their profits.
What will Exxon Mobil do with all their extra cash? Are they going to help with research of alternative energy or will they continue looking for more ways to rape the earth in search of that last drop of oil? I am betting on the latter.
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