Honda's profit soared on an auto-production rebound, while rival Mazda continued to post a loss despite increased output.

WSJ: What's News

Ford Motor (nyse: F - news - people) said today it will idle three auto-production plants because of its Firestone tire recall, taking 6, 000 workers off the production lines.

FORBES: News Scan P.M.

Now auto production has doubled year-over-year and TI's sales are up more than 20%, but Kozyra isn't interested in borrowing a dime.

FORBES: About Joseph Stiglitz

Housing starts and auto production slumped in mid-2006.

FORBES: Tech Bubble 2.0?

Instead, the PGMs could be underpinned by the restarting of auto production in Japan after it was taken mostly off-line following the earthquake and tsunami earlier this year.

FORBES: METALS OUTLOOK: Gold Prices To Stabilize Next Week After Recent Break

The deal called for the two companies to reopen Fremont, re-hired United Auto Workers members, and run the plant under the Toyota Production System.

FORBES: Building Teslas At The GM Plant That Refused To Die

It takes a certain amount of time for companies to make decisions and re-engineer a product, in this case auto catalysts, and put them into production.

FORBES: Honda's Reduced Use Of Rhodium Part Of Effort To Shift Away From More-Expensive Metals

If the yet-to-be-named car is a success when it goes on sale next year, it would herald the emergence of Tata Motors on the global auto scene, mark the advent of India as a global center for small-car production and represent a victory for those who advocate making cheap goods for potential customers at the "bottom of the pyramid" in emerging markets.

FORBES: The Next People's Car

That led to less PGM usage during that time, but Winmill said auto production elsewhere in the world would make up for it and thus there would ultimately not be any knock-on demand for the metals.

FORBES: Mining Share Weakness Could Have Many Reasons -- Midas Fund