It was recently announced that General Motors will cut the second shift from its Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant next March. Nearly 1,200 workers will be affected.
This comes on the heels of GM's announcement that five of its U.S. assembly plants -- including Detroit-Hamtramck and Lansing Grand River -- will close down for anywhere from one to three weeks in January.
That will temporarily idle over 10,000 workers.
Detroit News business columnist Daniel Howes joined Stateside to talk about the state of the auto industry and what has led to the slowdown in production. Howes wrote in a recent column that Detroit's automakers "may be in danger of becoming victims of their own success."
The automaker is slowing down production because they have an excess in inventory and while sales are strong, the powers that be don't anticipate smaller car sales to keep pace in 2017. With inventory rates approaching Great Recession numbers, car sales are being slowed down.
Meanwhile, low gas prices have helped the resurgence of truck and SUV sales.
Listen to the full interview to hear Howe's analysis of how automakers are responding to the Obama Administration's doubling down on fuel standards and what the future may hold for the industry when President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month.
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