US automotive supply base failing

	This article appears in the August 5, 2005 issue of Executive Intelligence Review. U.S. Auto Supplier Sector Is in the Worst Shape Ever by Richard Freeman The shake-out of General Motors and Ford Motor during 2005 has caused the most violent and widespread dismantling of the U.S. auto parts supplier sector in the more than century-old history of the automobile. The suppliers sector represents the "undercarriage" of the auto industry: It produces the brakes, electrical wiring, shocks/struts, seats, and other vital components. During 2005's first six months, Standard & Poor's downgraded 25 U.S.-based auto suppliers, while upgrading only one. Tower Automotive, Collins & Aikman, Meridian, Uni Boring, and Trim Trends, went bankrupt. The world's two largest parts suppliers, Delphi and Visteon, are millimeters from bankruptcy.