Paul Ballew
Paul Ballew
ahead beating month number objective production response sales
On the (Tahoe), we're beating expectations on a number of fronts. We're beating the production schedule, we're ahead of our sales objective for the month and the response we're getting from dealers is positive.
area fuel issue mean notoriety remains strategy top
It is a very, very important issue and, as we try to communicate all the time, it has been and remains at the top of our concerns, ... Just because we don't get the notoriety of having a Prius doesn't mean we don't have a comprehensive strategy in the area of fuel economy.
expect sales strengthen
We do need to see sales and we expect to see sales strengthen as we get into May and June.
staring
We do have some payback out there staring us in the face.
certainly current levels pleased run satisfied share
We're certainly not pleased with current share levels and we're not satisfied with it, but we have to run this play.
overall share tough
Overall share is going to be tough for us this year.
dominate market reduced remains
remains well positioned to dominate the market even at reduced volumes.
consumers driven march reading
I wouldn't say it was driven by the March results, but our reading about where consumers are at.
against appears caution energy general higher industry prices running slight slowing start step strong year
It appears the industry is running at a very strong rate, ... It's a very slight step down from the very blistering start we started the year with, but it's still a strong pace. There are legitimately headwinds, like higher energy prices and a general slowing of the economy. But we caution against overreacting to the headwinds.
coming describe february position
While we still have a lot to do, I would describe February and our position coming out of February as pretty good.
advantage brands build continue focus retail
What's important for us is to focus on stabilizing the retail part of our business, take advantage of new products, continue to build our brands and be competitive.
category essential expect lift time
What's important for us is this is a category that is essential to GM. Volume-wise, we expect some lift from the new product. Time will tell how much that lift is.
improve pleased quality sales
We're not pleased with our sales decline, but it's important for us to improve the quality of our sales.
believe break simple time
We believe it's time to be simple and compelling. It is important to break through the clutter.