Sign of the times

Okay, a little trivia: what’s worth more, a gallon of gasoline or one share of General Motors common stock?

The fact that I could even pose such a question in a serious manner is quite remarkable. The answer is GM stock (barely), which entered today trading at about $5, although intraday trading yesterday reached as low as $2.26, according to the Wall Street Journal; the average price of a gallon of gasoline for the week of October 6 is $3.48.

But give it some time.

General Motors is under significant distress, as are Ford Motor Company and private-equity owned Chrysler. Rapidly declining sales, a crushing pension and healthcare burden, and a product line ill-suited to the new paradigm of high energy costs and climate change have all played a part in bringing low the once-mighty American automobile industry. If you still own stock in American automobile manufacturers, you are either a masochist or an idiot.