Australia Hikes Financial Aid to Auto Industry

The Australian government nearly doubles its assistance to the struggling domestic auto industry to A$6.2 billion ($4.2 billion) over the next 13 years, but sticks to the plan to halve import tariffs to 5% in 2010.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says the extra A$3.4 billion ($2.3 billion) in funding is part of the government’s strategy to protect jobs and focus the country’s car industry on becoming more economically and environmentally sustainable by 2020.

He says the A$7.7 ...