Mazda Motor Corp., a third owned by Ford Motor Co., fell the most in a month after the euro weakened against the yen.

Mazda fell 39 yen, or 6.9 percent, to close at 527 yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The carmaker exports about 80 percent of production in Japan and gets more than half of its operating profit from Europe. The euro fell to the weakest against the yen in more than a year after European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said that the 15-nation euro region is in an “episode of weak activity.”

Stephen Odell, 53, was named to steer a money-losing brand that has lost sales in its biggest market, the U.S., under Ford stewardship. The U.S. luxury leaders, Toyota Motor Corp.’s Lexus and Bayerische Motoren Werke’s BMW, meanwhile, have boosted U.S. volume by more than 75 percent.

“He has to figure out a way to make Volvo popular again,” said Aaron Bragman, a Troy, Michigan-based auto analyst for Global Insight Inc.

General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., the biggest U.S. automakers, dragged the domestic industry to its 10th straight monthly sales decline in August as consumers continued to snub trucks because of gasoline prices.

GM dropped 20 percent and Ford was down 27 percent. Each further pared production plans for the rest of the year. Deliveries at their main Japanese rivals, Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., fell less than 10 percent.

Mercedes-Benz will take on Volvo buses on Indian roads and look to replicate their global dominance in buses in the Indian market too. Globally, Mercedes enjoys a 70% market share in buses, while Volvo has a 5% share, the head of Daimler Buses, Harald Landman, points out. So they will be aiming for the number one slot in India too. Fleet owners are already switching loyalties despite a premium pricing over the Volvo. Three of the leading Volvo buyers in India have lined up to pick up the first buses rolling out of the company’s plant in Pune with the body made by Sutlej Motors.

Mazda Motor Corp. (7267.TO) said Friday that its joint venture in China slashed its vehicle sales projection for this fiscal year amid slowing auto demand in the key growth market.

Auto makers have been able to partially make up for a sharp decline in their global sales on solid demand for cars in emerging markets, even as more mature markets falter due to economic weakness.

Ford Motor Co. (F) has won court approval to shift its retiree health-care expenses to a United Auto Workers union-run trust fund.

Ford is the last of the Detroit auto makers to win court approval to create the Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association fund which was part of a new labor deal reached last year with the UAW. General Motors Corp. (GM) received its court approval in July followed by Chrysler LLC (C.XX) earlier this month.

Ford Motor Co., moving to wean itself from dependence on light trucks, said it will spend $75 million to convert a Michigan sport-utility-vehicle factory to build cars.

Work at the Michigan truck plant in the Detroit suburb of Wayne will begin in November, and production of an unspecified small car will start there in 2010, Ford said in a statement.

Ford Motor Co (F.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) plans to invest $75 million to retool a Michigan truck plant to build cars as part of its effort to boost its product line-up with more fuel-efficient vehicles, the automaker said on Tuesday.

Ford’s truck plant in Wayne, Michigan, which currently builds the slow-selling Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs, is scheduled to produce cars in 2010.

Taylor Hacquard’s first trip to Ontario’s Mosport International Raceway failed to lack drama as the Vancouver racer put in a spirited performance on what was both an eventful and busy Saturday hosting Round 8 of the 2008 Star Mazda Championship Presented by Goodyear.

General Motors Corp. Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner said last week the company is hoping its recent decision to offer employee discounts to all will help spur some activity in a U.S. auto industry that remains uncertain.

“It is very early, but I would say, one or two days out of the box, the reaction is excellent,” Wagoner said last week in Lordstown, Ohio. “The market is so unsteady now we need to let this play out a few days and see if we can use it to build up some momentum. … to see if we could find anything that would get the market going a little bit.”