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According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, Automotive Suppliers Fight for Survival in an Internet-enabled World - and e-Purchasing's Impact Really Hasn't Even Been Felt Yet

28 September 2000

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, Automotive Suppliers Fight for Survival in an Internet-enabled World - and e-Purchasing's Impact Really Hasn't Even Been Felt Yet

    NEW YORK--September 28, 2000--

(...Why Selling Out Looks Better and Better)
    The impact of Internet-enabled purchasing is shaking up the world of auto suppliers at precisely the same time that a drastic downsizing is taking place, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers' report, Moving up or down the Automotive Value Chain. Fewer than a tenth of all suppliers operating only two years ago are expected to survive as independent entities.
    Mike Burwell, automotive industry specialist in Transaction Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers, can discuss:

    -- Why the future of hundreds of Tier 1 suppliers and thousands of Tier 2 suppliers is in question - and why the pace of M&A will inevitably accelerate.

    -- How `e-Purchasing' by the big carmakers is one of the biggest factors in the consolidation - and how suppliers are scrambling to adapt to Internet-enabled supply chain management or sell out to those who can adapt.

    -- How financial buyers are driving the M&A process for many suppliers - and why their power will be even more fully demonstrated in 2000.

    Burwell can also speak to:

--	Global consolidation issues in the automotive industry.
--	Trends in automotive M&A.
--	How change in the automotive industry will impact shareholder

returns.

    PricewaterhouseCoopers (www.pwcglobal.com) is the world's largest professional services organization. Drawing on the knowledge and skills of more than 150,000 people in 150 countries, the organization helps clients solve complex business problems and measurably enhance their ability to build value, manage risk and improve performance in an Internet-enabled world. PricewaterhouseCoopers refers to the member firms of the worldwide PricewaterhouseCoopers organization.
    For more information or for a copy of PricewaterhouseCoopers' report, Moving up or down the Automotive Value Chain, please contact: