While global vehicle sales were up in 2012, carmakers are proceeding with caution, with closures in some regions shifting industry focus to the US and developing markets.

The Arab Spring protests, and the months of political instability that followed, slowed FDI inflows into north Africa. But rather than pulling out of the region entirely, many investors simply put their projects on hold or moved into other more stable economies such as Morocco and Algeria.

The rising price of labour is one reason for the decline in automotive manufacturing in the UK in recent years, but this has not stopped Japanese car manufacturer Toyota from increasing its operations in the country. UK deputy managing director Tony Walker explains why such labour costs should not stop the UK from being a successful car producing country.

Derby was one of the key cities in the UK during the Industrial Revolution, and that spirit has remained as it has set itself as one of the country's hubs for high-tech industries such as automotives and gaming.

Local authorities in the US have long considered incentives to be a good way of attracting companies to invest in their city or state. But with many local budgets suffering from enormous deficits and a long list of companies that have failed to deliver the level of investment or job creation that was expected of them, is this the best way to spend public money?