President Obama Says the Auto Industry is Back

Written by Brady    Wednesday, 25 January 2012 14:20

During Tuesday's State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama stated the "The American Auto Industry is Back". The President pointed to the auto industry recovery as one of the stepping stones in getting the American economy going strong by strengthening the American manufacturing industry. Below is the full excerpt regarding the auto industry from his speech on January 24th, 2012.

"On the day I took office, our auto industry was on the verge of collapse. Some even said we should let it die. With a million jobs at stake, I refused to let that happen. In exchange for help, we demanded responsibility. We got workers and automakers to settle their differences. We got the industry to retool and restructure. Today, General Motors is back on top as the world’s number one automaker. Chrysler has grown faster in the U.S. than any major car company. Ford is investing billions in U.S. plants and factories. And together, the entire industry added nearly 160,000 jobs. 

We bet on American workers. We bet on American ingenuity. And tonight, the American auto industry is back."

The auto industry is certainly in a much better place than it was a few years ago. The economy has improved since then. Banks are lending to more people which in turn has helped pushed auto sales. Furthermore, car loan interest rates have been extremely low all year while gas prices have been high. These two situations have helped to move people into new vehicles especially more fuel efficient cars. Finally, the earthquake and tsunami that ravaged Japan last year helped slow down Honda and Toyota.