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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, September 27, 2002

Auto executives forecast sales rebound for 2003

By Joseph Coleman
Associated Press

PARIS — Economic troubles in the United States, Germany and Japan? You wouldn't know it from the Paris Auto Show this week, where executives showed off luxury models and predicted robust car sales next year.

A glossy Jaguar XJ is among several luxury car models to be unveiled at the Paris Auto Show. Executives of several companies predict growth in the auto market in 2003, despite economic troubles.

Associated Press

Jaguar unveiled its newest XJ yesterday with strobe lights and dramatic music, and Chief Operating Officer Bob Dover guaranteed "a driving experience that satisfies the desire for a luxury saloon with a true sporting character."

Then there was DaimlerChrysler's Maybach — a rendition of the old Maybach luxury vehicles of the 1920s and '30s. The Maybach, which retails for $310,000, features extras like pollen filters and heated seats.

Car executives backed up the razzle-dazzle with confident predictions of growth in the auto market, economic troubles aside.

BMW Chairman Helmut Panke said he expects auto sales in Western Europe to rise 2 percent to 3 percent in 2003, recovering from an expected 4 percent slump in 2002.

"The trend will reverse after the negative developments this year," Panke told Dow Jones Newswires.

There are already signs the economy is starting to stabilize throughout Europe, said Panke, adding that even this year, the premium segment of auto markets worldwide continues to outperform high-volume car sales.

In the United States, the most important export market for German auto companies, Panke said overall car sales will likely be about 17 million this year and next. BMW expects to sell more than 1 million cars worldwide in 2002.

French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen was also optimistic. The company's sales have increased 54 percent from 1998 to 2002 — and executives expect that trend to continue.

Volkswagen officials also hoped for a recovery in the European market next year, though they said it was too soon to give a sales forecast.

"The hope all lies in 2003," board member Robert Buechelhofer told Dow Jones. "I am optimistic even if the fundamentals of economic growth don't confirm that yet."