Of Sales, Unemployment, and Production: The Economy’s Effects on Auto Finance

Event Details

Time: July 22, 2009 from 2pm to 2:45pm
Location: Audio Conference
Event Type: audio, conference
Organized By: AutoFinanceNews.net
Latest Activity: Dec 15, 2009

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Event Description

This complimentary audio conference exclusively for AutoFinanceNews.net Members held on Wednesday July 22 at 2:00 PM eastern time will provide a comprehensive view of the U.S. economy and its future, with details on consumer demand and spending and an update on the bailout and the OEMs. The audio conference features Bill Strauss, a senior economist and economic advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and a Member of AutoFinanceNews.net.

Strauss joined the Chicago Fed in 1982, and his chief responsibilities include analyzing the current performance of both the Midwest economy and the manufacturing sector for use in monetary policy. He also produces the monthly Chicago Fed Midwest Manufacturing Index and organizes the Bank's annual Economic Outlook Symposium and annual Auto Outlook Symposium. Strauss is a regular presenter at the Auto Finance Summit.

Strauss earned a B.A. in economics and geography from the State University of New York at Buffalo and an M.A. in economics from Northwestern University.

Call-In instructions will be sent on the morning of the call.

Strauss's presentation will include a Q&A session. The PowerPoint presentation as well as an audio recording of the call will be available here post conference call.

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Comment by Molly Devine on July 22, 2009 at 2:59pm: To access a recording of this call please dial:
(712)432-1085
Access Code: 214724

Comment by Mike Gibb on July 22, 2009 at 2:00pm: Here is the presentation as a .pdf. Strauss090722.pdf

Comment by Molly Devine on July 22, 2009 at 1:52pm: You can access the PowerPoint presentation that goes along with this audio conference here:
Strauss- 090722.ppt

Comment by Molly Devine on July 22, 2009 at 12:54pm: Dear Colleague,

Thank you for registering for today’s audio conference “Of Sales, Unemployment, and Production: The Economy’s Effects on Auto Finance," presented by AutoFinanceNews.net. The teleconference will begin at 2:00 pm EST.

Some notes about accessing the event:

* You will hear an automated operator enter you into the call; and
* During the conference call you will be muted until the Q&A portion of the call -- we certainly encourage your active participation at that time.

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Should you need assistance, please call us at 800-320-4418 option 4 or via email at events@royalmedia.com. If you have any technical difficulties, call 877-482-5838.

Once again, thank you for participating in the “Of Sales, Unemployment, and Production: The Economy’s Effects on Auto Finance,” audio conference. We hope you find it enjoyable and meaningful.

Comment by JJ Hornblass on July 21, 2009 at 9:19am: Dial-in instructions will be provided in advance of the teleconference. We look forward to hosting you!

I am eagerly anticipating this teleconference. As some of you know, Bill's among the best auto economists in the nation, and I can't recall a time since I started writing about financial services in 1993 when economic factors were so critical to the solvency of financial services. Perhaps only that week or two at the height of the Russian ruble crisis in 1998 compare to what we have seen over the last 11 months.

Here's what I'll be listening for during Bill's presentation:

1. There seem to be a few major economic currents coursing through the auto finance sector these days. Firstly, unemployment. If you are starting to consider the 2010 SAAR, as I am, the unemployment rate seems to be the major variable, because other economic indicators are starting to show improvement. For example, personal income actually seems to have turned the corner already. It seems as though any forecast for the SAAR is contingent on getting a handle on unemployment.

2. Second is housing. This whole economic mess started with a collapse of the housing market, and it appears as though the whole economy remains at the mercy of the housing market to some extent. I wonder what Bill thinks of that perception, and what he thinks will happen in both the commercial and residential real estate markets. There are some scary prognoses for the commercial real estate market floating around out there. And yesterday, one industry executive told me about a forecast for steep declines in home values on the East Coast that have yet to come (the forecast pegged the West Coast housing market at its bottom, by the way). Again, the fortunes of the economy in some way seem to also be tied up in housing, so my question for Bill is whether this is true and whether the auto market will rise above these challenges -- or succumb to them yet again in the immediate quarters to come?

3. Finally, I am curious to know whether Bill has seen any economic impact from the Chrysler and GM bankruptcies. The Obama administration's actions were predicated on a presumption that if Chrysler and GM were to disorderly liquidate, the nation's economy (or at least the Midwest's economy) would suffer greatly. Well, we saw orderly bankruptcies and I wonder whether there were in fact any residual effects on the economy from these and/or from the reductions in dealerships.

These are just a few of the key points I hope Bill will touch on. What are your questions for Bill? Post them here and we'll make sure to air them. (You can also ask questions during the teleconference, of course.)

Until tomorrow ...