Bratislava Is Not Detroit, Just So You Know

As they continue their pleas for a federal bailout (hopefully while forgoing end-of-the-year bonuses and use of corporate jets), the figureheads of major U.S. automobile companies took a little left jab to the jaw from, of all places, Slovakia!

"We're in a good position to grow," says Maria Novakova, secretary-general of Slovakia's Automotive Industry Association. "Frankly, we don't want to be compared to Detroit because we don't want to end up like Detroit."

Ouch. This obvious dig at Michigan's famed, but struggling, automotive industry comes at a time when U.S. car makers find themselves under a harsh magnifying glass gripped tightly by both the American public and government.

In 2006, South Korean auto bantamweight, Kia, successfully opened a $1.36-billion plant in the northwestern Slovakian town of Zilina (pictured). Peugeot and Volkswagen also have operations in Slovakia, a former Communist nugget in Eastern Europe.

Novakova estimates 30,000 new jobs in the automotive sector will ripple through Slovakia's economy by 2010. Analysts cite the country's skilled, yet relatively cheap, labor pool, plus low taxes and good highways as primary factors for Slovakia's automatic automotive boom.

So, congrats to Bratislava, but why disrespect Detroit? Maybe something (other than jobs) was lost in translation.

Arabian Pathfinders

Arabian Automobiles Company, one of the largest automobile distributors in the Gulf and the sole distributor of Nissan, Infiniti, and Renault in the Northern Emirates, announced today that they will invest over $136 million over the next three years to expand its sales and services facilities in and around Dubai. The company, which is owned by AW Rostamani Corporation, will construct its largest logistics facility on three million square feet in Dubai Industrial City, with the capacity to hold 12,000 cars. The facility will cost $95.3 million.

The firm's goal is to capture at least 25% of Dubai's local car market by 2010.

In 2006, 236,515 cars were sold in the United Arab Emirates, an increase of 23 percent over 2005. According to Arabian Automobiles statistics, the sales of Japanese cars between January and April of 2007 grew 32.3 percent compared to the same period last year.

Despite political tensions in the Middle East and the rising cost of living in Dubai, the auto market is hot. At least Arabian Auto is banking on it.

Sources: Middle East North Africa Financial Network (Jordon), AW Rostamani/Arabian Automobiles, AME Info, Gulf News