ABSTRACT
Worldwide annual production of passenger cars grew 5.4 percent in 1997, to 39 million—an all-time high. 1 (See Figure 1.) This pushed the global auto fleet up 2.4 percent, to 501 million. 2 (See Figure 2.) The world's car population has increased more than ninefold since 1950, while the number of people per car has dropped at least fourfold. 3 (See Figure 3.) But sales have lagged production recently, leading to a worldwide glut that analysts expect to continue for the near future. 4
