Automotive Industry Accounts for 4 Percent of U.S. GDP

A failure by one or more of the Detroit Three automakers and their suppliers could put national security as well as the economy at risk, since the defense industry supply chains draw heavily on such companies, government officials said Monday at the Michigan Defense and Innovation Symposium at Schoolcraft College in Livonia, MI.

Gen. James Cartwright, U.S. Marine Corps vice-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said an automotive failure would disrupt some defense supply chains. But he stopped short of saying it would threaten security or cripple the nation’s defenses.

But U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, did say the possible loss of one or more automakers and their suppliers could be a security problem.

Levin was returning to Washington to seek support Monday for allocating $25 billion out of the recent $700 billion stabilization or federal bailout package toward automotive bridge loans.

The Army Tacom Life Cycle Management Command, headquartered in Warren, MI managed about $30 billion in various contracts with companies making tank and automotive products for the Army during fiscal 2008.

The automotive industry accounts for 4 percent of U.S. gross domestic product and an estimated 1 in 10 U.S. jobs is in some way auto-related, according to federal data.

Source: Failure of the Big Three Would Impact Defense Supply Chains

Share This Post

Share this post, Big Three Failure Would Impact Defense Supply Chains, via email or one of these services:

↑ top