Challenging I Padroni

Article Abstract:

Fiat managing director Cesare Romiti and heads of other large Italian corporations and conglomerates oppose proposals to effect an Italian antitrust law. Italy is the only major industrialized nation that has no antitrust regulations. Romiti believes that antitrust regulations would slow Italian economic development, and blames both the Catholic church and Marxists for what he calls an anti-capitalist upsurge. Family-run industrial empires have been prominent in Italy since the nineteenth century. The dominance of Fiat and other companies alone is not what concerns Italian politicians; it is the extension of these firms into areas of the economy which have been outside their purview. Socialist party chmn Roberto Cassola explains that until recently, Italy's large state-controlled sector and labor unions served as a counter-weight to private industrial groups, but reports that this no longer holds true.

Conglomerate corporations, Antitrust law, Economic policy, Political aspects, Romiti, Cesare, Cassola, Roberto, Italian Socialist Party

---

Invasion alert

Article Abstract:

Fiat SpA (Turin, Italy) is worried about the potential invasion of the Italian automobile market by Japanese companies in 1993 once automobile import restrictions are removed in the European Community. Japan currently is allowed to export only 3,300 cars to Italy under a bilateral trade agreement signed in 1955. Fiat enjoys a 54% share of the Italian auto market, but it lacks variety in its product line which may put it at a disadvantage in a more competitive market. Italians are afraid that even a modest penetration of the market by the Japanese will have dire economic consequences on the Italian economy if it reduces the number of vehicles produced by Fiat due to its effect on other Italian manufacturers used in the production process. Fiat is looking to the east for potential markets, and is involved in $8 billion worth of joint projects with the USSR and other Eastern European countries.

Japan, International trade, Automobile industry

---

Leaders of the pack

Article Abstract:

European motorcycle makers have, in recent years, slowly carved out healthy market niches that have enabled them to compete against the dominant Japanese motorcycle giants. Italian firms such as the Cagiva Group, Moto Guzzi, and Aprilia have led the European effort by concentrating on specialist models that have captured niche markets through slick marketing. Other firms such as Britain's Triumph and Norton, and Germany's BMW have followed the Italian firms' lead by developing specialized bikes that capitalize on the classic names and trendy image of Europe's new-look motorcycle makers.

Motorcycles, bicycles, and parts, Industry Overview, Europe, Market share, Motorcycles, Motorcycle industry

Similar abstracts:

• Abstracts: Vini nobili. Secrets of the Cabernet. Mixing their drinks
• Abstracts: Poking and prodding Japanese managers into better performance. Looking past the fads: how to get back to basics
• Abstracts: Aging and the environment. Competitiveness and the public sector
• Abstracts: America builds its single market. Hubris on the Liffey. Turkey: pining for EC membership
• Abstracts: National account management sales training and directions for improvement: a focus on skills/abilities. Approaches for improving salespersons' forecasts

This website is not affiliated with document authors or copyright owners. This page is provided for informational purposes only. Unintentional errors are possible.