ABSTRACT
The severe global recession of 2008-2009 had a major impact on the world's motor vehicle industry. This chapter compares the motor vehicle industries in Europe and North America during the severe recession and the policy responses in the two regions to these conditions. It provides a comparison of motor vehicle industry trends in Europe and North America at the start of the severe recession in 2008. The chapter explains a comparison of policy responses in Europe and North America to auto industry conditions during the recession. It discusses the on-going challenges in the European and North American motor vehicle industries in the aftermath of the severe recession. A European Economic Recovery Plan, issued in 2008, listed some strategic aims for the regions overall economy, not specifically for the motor vehicle industry. The European Commission Communication, Temporary Framework for state aid measures to support access to finance in the current financial and economic crisis, issued in 2009.
