Honda Motor Co. announced further cuts in production in North America as consumer automobile demand continues to drop. Spokesperson Ed Miller reported that the cuts would occur at five of Honda's seven plants across the U.S. and Canada. Employees at the plants will be given paid or unpaid vacation, but no layoffs are planned as part of the cuts.

Honda Motor Co. is dedicated to its first assembly plant in Indiana despite recent declines in the economy. The new assembly plant is expected to produce 200,000 civics annually. Last month Honda reported a 41 percent drop in quarterly profits as the auto industry faced the slowest sales in over 17 years.

Honda Motor Company's operating profit is expected to drop as much as 40 percent for its fiscal year ending in March due to the weak auto market and the strengthening of the yen vs the dollar. Honda is Japan's second largest auto maker and issued a lower forecast back in April.

Honda Motor's auto sales were down 21 percent in September in the U.S. as consumer spending continues to decline. For the month of September Honda sold 96,626 vehicles in the U.S.

A Honda executive reported Wednesday that the company's new hybrid model will be priced lower than Toyota's Prius. The new five-door car will be smaller than the Civic and will compete directly with Toyota's Prius. The hybrid Prius currently sales for $21,500. Honda plans to initially sell 100,000 units in North America starting at the beginning of 2009.

Honda beat analysts estimates, after the company reported record first-quarter profits. According to Honda, demand for its automobile products is surging in Asia, Brazil, and other new markets. This huge growth is allowing the company to overcome lower demand in the U.S., Europe, and Japan.

Honda is being to produce fuel-cell cars that look just like ordinary cars but they no longer demand petroleum based products. On Monday, Honda begun its production of the FCX Clarity, which is the world's first hydrogen powered automobile designed for mass production. Although, the company plans to eventually ramp up production, it is only planning to produce 200 annually for the first three years.... More

Toyota beat Honda to the punch by initially bringing the Prius to the market in 1997, and then in 2003 Toyota released a vastly improved model, which quickly an instant hit in Japan. Honda has released hybrid vehicles; however, they have not yet had the same success with their hybrid models as Toyota. Honda is now hoping to change that. It is planning to release three new hybrid vehicles with improved... More

Honda Motor Corp. reported its largest drop in profits in ten years. The company stated that net income dropped 86 percent to 25.4 billion yen ($244 million). The company who makes nearly 70 percent of its revenues from America is going to have a rough year as the stronger yen compared to the dollar will hurt the company.

Honda Motor Co. posted a 38 percent rise in earnings for its third-quarter, led by increasing strong sales of its fuel-efficient cars in China, Europe, and North America. Honda also raised its 2008 profit forecast in the U.S. stating that there is an increased demand from American consumers for its small mid size vehicles due to high-gasoline prices.

Honda Motor announced that its sales in Europe grew by as much as 21.8%, and reported global sales growth of 4%.