Last week, the EPA unveiled rules that establish the first national limits on power plant emissions of a host of poisonous airborne pollutants. It's estimated that they'll save the country billions of dollars in health care costs.
The Easy-Bake Oven is falling victim to the fight against global warming. The incandescent light bulbs that heat the toy ovens are being phased out in 2012 in favor of energy-efficient compact fluorescents. But precisely because they are energy efficient, they don't get hot enough to bake a cookie.
Ford CEO Alan Mulally and Executive Chairman Bill Ford, have been awarded $56.5 million and $42.4 million in stock, respectively, in recognition for the company's stunning turnaround, which resulted in the automaker raking in $6.6 billion last year -- its best performance in more than a decade.
Ford Motor said sales of its cars and trucks rose 13.3% in January on improved demand by consumers, bucking last year's trend, when sales to fleet customers largely drove the increase. For the month, the automaker sold 127,317 units, up 13.3% compared to a year ago.
The nation's automakers ended 2010 strong, with most reporting higher sales for December. Consumers seemed to put concerns about the U.S. economy on hold and more than offset reduced demand by fleet customers, such as corporations and rental-car companies.
The nation's second-largest automaker reported a healthy year-over-year sales increase that was led by strong demand for the Edge crossover and the F-Series pickups. Overall, Ford enjoyed its best month of retail sales in 2010.
The economy may be less robust than most Americans would like, but that didn't stop many of them from hitting the showrooms in December. That likely propelled auto sales in the final month of 2010 to 1.13 million units, the year's highest levels.
It's traditionally one of the slowest months of the year for vehicle sales, but most automakers reported higher U.S. sales in November compared to a year ago, despite continued consumer caution about the slow economic recovery.
Sales at Ford Motor rose 24% in November compared to a year ago as demand surged for a wide range of the company's products, the automaker said Wednesday. For the month, Ford said it moved 147,338 vehicles off dealers' lots, up from 118,536 in November 2009.
Year-over-year gains are again likely when automakers report November U.S. sales figures Wednesday. But a drop from this October's level is on tap. Detroit probably fared better than its foreign counterparts as sales rebounded further from last year's anemic levels.
Buoyed by consumers' increased confidence in the U.S. economy, most automakers reported higher sales of cars and trucks in the U.S. during October compared to a year ago -- making it the best October in three years for the auto industry.
Carmakers are expected to report a mixed picture for October sales: mostly better than a year ago, but down slightly from September. Still, the pace appears strong enough that the upper end of full-year forecasts is reachable.
The U.S. automaker reported a $1.7 billion profit on strong demand for its revamped line of products, despite a lackluster economy. Continued growth at its Ford Credit finance unit also helped push profits higher.
Riding high on improved demand for its vehicles, analysts expect Ford to post a record third-quarter profit of $1.37 billion tomorrow. The automaker's current third-quarter earnings record is $1.13 billion, set in 1997.
