Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 11, 2017)
Page 12 The Skanner January 11, 2017 News Despite scandal, VW in Running for Global Sales Crown Former head of U.S. environmental compliance was arrested this week, and company may pay fines By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Ger- many (AP) — It’s ironic: Volkswagen spent 2016 battling a huge scandal over cars it rigged to cheat on emissions tests. And now stands a de- cent chance to pass Toyo- ta for the title of world’s biggest carmaker for the year. Booming business in China helped Volkswa- gen increase its sales to 10.31 million vehicles last year across all its brands, which include Audi, Porsche and Skoda, the company said Tuesday. That was an increase of 3.8 percent over 2015, when Volkswagen came in second to Toyota. And “ That Volkswagen is even in the running for top spot seems remark- able considering how terrible the year was on investor lawsuits and criminal probes in Ger- many and the U.S., where a heavy criminal fine is likely. Volkswagen has China is the big equalizer. Diesel plays no role there, so your reputation can’t suffer. China to- day is the center of the automotive world, for Volkswagen as well a strong finish to the year in December — 11.8 per- cent better than the same month the year before — improves the company’s chances of moving from No. 2 to No. 1 in global sales. the legal and image front. The company based in Wolfsburg, Germany, agreed to a $15 billion settlement for claims from U.S. environmental authorities and owners of 500,000 cars. It faces admitted to equipping diesel cars with software that turned emission controls on when the ve- hicle was being tested and off during daily driv- ing. The scandal news kept coming this week as Ol- iver Schmidt, Volkswa- gen’s former head of U.S. environmental com- pliance, was arrested in Florida and appeared in a Detroit court in prison garb and shackles. En- gineer James Liang had earlier pleaded guilty and offered to assist fed- eral law enforcement in their investigation. Despite all that, huge demand in China may be enough to push Volk- swagen past its Japanese rival and Detroit-based General Motors. Neither rival has reported 2016 sales yet. For 2015, Toyo- ta Motor Co. came in first with 10.15 million, Volk- swagen was second with 9.93 million, and GM third with 9.8 million. Volkswagen’s im- proved sales show how crucial China has become for Germany’s carmak- ers, including BMW and Daimler. Of the three, Volkswagen is the most dependent on the Middle Kingdom. It sold 3.98 mil- lion cars there last year, more than a third of its total unit sales. Read the rest of this story at TheSkanner.com d ite g! lim atin se 3 1 s t A nnual Martin Luther King, Jr. BREAKFAST Tickets on sale at: www.theskanner.com/mlk-breakfast-tickets Jan. 16, 2017 8:30-10:30am Hilton Portland, Grand Ballroom 921 SW 6th Ave., Portland, OR keynote speaker howard Moore, Jr. CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY Attorney Howard Moore, Jr. earned his B.A. degree in 1954 from Morehouse College, and his LL.B. degree from Boston University School in Law. In 1962 he joined the Atlanta law firm of Moore, Alexander and Rindskopf. As one of only 10 black lawyers in Georgia, Moore worked long hours and traveled on Sundays with Vernon Jordan. Moore has represented both Julian Bond (1966) and Angela Davis (1971-1977). sponsors: H #SKBreakfast