Financial Crisis and M&A
The financial crisis, which hit the world with all its fury in the second half of 2008, has brought several of the major car manufacturers to their knees. This seems to be especially true for the American manufacturers: GM, Chrysler and Ford, which received state funded financial support in order to stay in business (Ingeniøren, 2008). This could mean that the future would hold even more mergers and acquisitions, because some companies might find cheap struggling companies that could fit into their portfolio.
The industry rivalry is considered to be very fierce in the premium automobile segment. This is seen on the basis of the high marketing and branding efforts that the companies engage in. Furthermore the rivalry is expected to increase even further in the future. This is based on the possibility of new entrants to the market.