First it was Alfa Romeo, then the Fiat 500, now Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne wants to see Iveco making an impact in the United States, and he's promising an unconventional approach. "We are looking for ways to establish a presence for Iveco in the U.S., our target is to transform Iveco from an international player to a global one," Marchionne told reporters during a presentation to launch the new Fiat Linea sedan in Istanbul, Turkey yesterday. He has never made any secret of his desire to turn Iveco into a global player, believing that its product mix a unique platform put it in an excellent position to achieve these ambitions. Iveco has recently entered into collaborations with Tata Motors in India as well a choosing a Chinese partner to boost its entry to this market.

There has been widespread speculation that the Fiat Group might buy a US-based truck manufacturer to use as a platform for an Iveco launch in North America, which heightened after Marchionne suggested late last month that they might make a US 'acquisition'. Speculation has pointed at Illinois-based truckmaker Navistar International which ticks all the right boxes for Iveco, and saw its share price briefly climb by 18 percent in a flurry of activity. Not only does the firm have exposure to the  'super heavy' truck division where Iveco is currently underrepresented, it has a large engine making division as well as a very strong niche market presence, including building specialist vehicles for the US military and federal government; and truck, bus and camper vehicle conversions.
 

Iveco is an acknowledged world leader in niche products and sees further exploitation of this area as a key part of its future strategy. Yesterday Marchionne further muddied the waters though, telling reporters that Iveco's arrival on the US market "may be done through the most unusual and unconventional ways that no one has ever forecast," before adding that this "doesn't have to mean buying".

The Fiat Group owns CNH, the global agricultural and construction sector giant which is headquartered in the US, and has a very large exposure there. The size of CNH and breadth of its operations could provide many synergies for Iveco. Earlier this year CNH's finance division underwrote a new finance scheme for Maserati car dealers. Fiat's Ferrari and Maserati niche sportscar divisions have their biggest markets in the United States, while Alfa Romeo will return to North America in just two years time. Marchionne, who is Italian-Canadian, and has strong business contacts in the US, has also recently hinted that the Fiat 500 will be sold stateside 'after 2010'.