US-German Alliance
Opel Chairman David Herman, right, and General Motors International boss Louis Hughes chat with US President Bill Clinton and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl during their recent visit to GM's plant in Eisenach, Germany.
Special customer
DAIMLER-BENZ Chairman Juergen Schrempp says US President Bill Clinton talked to him about the Daimler-Chrysler merger. Clinton, says Schrempp, wondered whether he would be able to buy a Mercedes at the price of a Chrysler. 'I promised him yes,' said Schrempp, 'but only once.'
Beatrix Israel
No hands, no fine
DENMARK IS taking a stand against drivers who chat on their mobile phones. Beginning 1 July, drivers will be fined $45 if they are caught using a mobile while driving, unless it is hands free.
Leif Nielsen
Reuter moves out
EDZARD REUTER, the former Daimler-Benz chairman, will leave his office at the company's headquarters in Stuttgart on 22 June 1998. His successor, Juergen Schrempp, said Reuter's consulting contract is running out. Reuter's recently published memoirs criticized many of his former colleagues and left bad feelings at Daimler-Benz headquarters.
Beatrix Israel
Romiti in winter
AFTER 25 years in the auto business, Fiat Chairman Cesare Romiti is shifting gears. Romiti will become chairman of RCS Editori, Italy's biggest publishing group, after retiring from Fiat on 22 June, two days before reaching the mandatory age limit of 75.
Fiat has offered Romiti an option to acquire as much as 5.5 percent of its stake in HDP, the holding company that controls RCS. Romiti also has an option to acquire Fiat's 18.8 percent stake in Gemina, a financial holding company with a stake in HDP, for an additional L80 billion ($45.7 million). In addition to RCS Editori, HDP controls the Valentino fashion house, Fila sportswear and clothing manufacturer. The Italian newspaper La Repubblica estimated that Romiti's total retirement package will be worth L180 billion ($103 million).
Luca Ciferri
