Due to the existence of the automobile, the United States economy was changed forever. Originally, cars were hand made and only purchased by rich men due to their price. Due to Henry Ford, automobiles were eventually made available to the masses due to the fact that he concocted a way to produce the machine cheaper. This method was the assembly line, which impacted the amount of jobs available and the increased need of highways. The Geography of Nowhere, written by James Kunstler, discusses how the automobiles transformed America’s economy.
The Model T was a car that the typical American could afford. This significantly increased demand for cars, which stimulated the economy and provided jobs across various industries. This included manufacturing, steel and oil production, and the construction of roads. The transportation
1. In what ways did the increasing popularity of the automobile contribute to economic growth and social change in the United States during the 1920s? In the 1920’s the popularity of automobile increased the growth of economy when Henry Ford decided to sell his vehicles for a lower price, allowing more people to be able to buy cars.
Items like cars, radios, and railroads were able to contribute to the expansion of the United States economically. Cars sustained the economy during the 1920s because after World War I, the economy witnessed some concerns (Shindo, 2015, p. 1). The Model T’s, popularity led to “a high standard of living for many Americans” (Shindo, 2015, p. 1). According to Shindo (2015, p. 1), the car industry boom led there to being an “industrial production, for the first time, that outpaced consumer demand.” Since cars require many resources to be made and to run, “the automobile industry, in turn, fueled growth in related industries such as construction, glass, rubber, oil and tourism”
The 1950’s were good times in America. The boom in the economy from World War II continued into the 1950’s. Consumer spending soared, wages were above average, and new technologies created more desires. (Shultz, 2104). The leading excitement in the economy was purchasing an automobile; furthermore, all classes of society could afford purchasing an automobile.
In 1929, there was a car for every five Americans. The government also spent over 1 billion dollars on the manufacturing of highways and bridges. Not only has the automobile produced a lot
However, automobiles like the Chevrolet, the Rambler and the Hudson Hornet were huge successes when it came to consumerism in the economy. Manufacturers in the automobile industry, would make small changes to every year’s model. These changes would persuade consumers to buy the new model and that they needed to update their cars every couple of years and ultimately expanded purchasing growth in the 50’s society.
Changing the price of the Model T was thought to improve the sales that have already previously occurred. Years after the Model T has been released to America other vehicles began to be released to the general public. It was during 1916 that a study was conducted to see which vehicle was purchased by Americans the most. As a result from the study it showed that 55% of the vehicles that Americans owned was the Model T, which was distributed by the Ford Motor Company.[4] As the years passed the number of Model T’s that were being purchased began to slow down which resulted in the slow down in their production. Unaware as to why the number of Model T’s being sold began to decrease it lead the Ford company no choice but to stop the production
After President Harding passed away and was replaced by Calvin Coolidge, America began to flourish in the 1920’s. This was due to the fact that he focused all his efforts upon the American economy and various industries. The two industries that had the greatest impact would have to be the automobile and the ariplane. Thanks to the efforts of Henry Ford, cars were now mass produced and cheap enough for the average American to afford one.
Known historically and internationally as the greatest economic struggle in American history, the Great Depression rendered the United States into fiscal terror. Almost seeming as a curse laid upon America, multiple major and minor events began to build upon one another and only make matters worse. This national downfall was mainly due to the crash of the stock market in 1929, the maldistribution of American wealth, the recent growth of consumerism, and the reduction of American exports around the world, with the most important cause being the international debt structure created by the aftermath of World War I. Speculated to be the beginning of an era of sadness, the stock market crash in 1929 put quite a dent in America’s economy. Known as
The article “How the recession has changed US consumer behavior” explain the changes in the decisions that consumers made when buying products during the recession. Companies were trying to understand the theory that “Changes in the relationship between how much consumers are willing to pay, on the other hand, and their perception of the value they are receiving, on the other, underpins behavioral changes.” Meaning that Instead of switching back to premium high priced product after the recession some consumers continued to use cheaper options leaving many companies to figure out how to raise their sales again. For example, P&G decided to begin a selling a bargain brand of tide detergent to compete with other cheaper brands when sales declined.
MACRO ENVIORNMENT: Macro environmental factors are those irrepressible external factors that affect the company’s decision making process. These factors include demographic, socio-cultural, economic, political-legal and also the natural factors. Demographic factors – Demographic factors include age, sex, religion, location, thickness, occupation etc. Apple Company has 217 stores in United Stated and about 273 stores worldwide.
General Motors is a multinational company that makes and sells vehicles and its parts. In 2009 General Motors had some financial problems. The automotive company had difficulties with their finances, as a result, the company was not profitable and was leaning towards bankruptcy. The company then reached out to the government for money to help with their situation. The Bush-led government decided to use $49.5 billion of taxpayers’ money to help General Motors out.
US auto industry is full of auto manufacturing companies, BMW Group, Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep, Ford Motors, General Motors, Honda/Acura, Hyundai/Kia, Mazda, Nissan, Subaru are the main competitors in US Auto market. For 2012 as a whole, automakers sold approximately 14.5 million vehicles in the U.S. Market, a 13 percent increase from 2011 and the highest annual sales total since 2007 marking the third consecutive year of annual sales increases of at least 10 percent. As fuel prices remain high and there is greater concern for the environment, more energy efficient cars are increasing in demand.
Political factors have huge influence on the profitability of the automobile industry. Political also include goods and services which the government wants to provide and goods
