Fiat’s stock rose 20% this past month on mere speculation that the company will be launching a new automotive division; auto manufacturing makes up just 56$ of Fiat’s total revenue, and separating it would give the company the ability to make further alliances and, in turn, make more money. Because that’s capitalism, friends. Fiat wants to go public, because that’s what major companies do, but they want to get Chrysler back up to snuff before they do so. But it’s not just some silly mandate – potential investors want to see progress on the Chrysler front before they can be convinced to buy shares, and Fiat might have too much on its hands to think about opening up a new division.

But only time will tell. Fiat, without Chrysler, is still would about $8 billion, and if Chrysler can get off the ground that number is going to skyrocket. The CEO of Fiat is planning on detailing how Chrysler will improve Fiat’s profitability through shared sales efforts and new technological advances, but Chrysler’s market share is still lagging behind its 2010 target. So only time will tell, as is always the case in up-and-coming news.