Ever feel like a sucker? Well right now, you should. After taking billions in bailout loans from the Federal Government, promising a half-million electric cars on the road by 2013 and even going so as establishing an electric vehicles program, Fiat-owned Chrysler has renegged on pretty much all of its electric car promises after axing the ENVI program.

This should come as no surprise to anyone who saw Chrysler’s revised vehicle lineup last week, but it still feels like a kick in the gut.

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Yesterday, Chrysler/Fiat’s new CEO Sergio Marchionne presented the 5-year business plan he hopes will save Chrysler, and bring Fiat back to the US market for the first time in nearly 30 years. The company presented its plan during a live, seven-hour-long marathon webcast, which was notable for two things: first, a virtually unprecedented willingness to discuss future product, and, second, the conspicuous absence of New Chrysler’s much-ballyhooed ENVI electric-vehicle division.

What happened to the Dodge EV? Can we expect some innovative green tech from Marchionne’s new Dodge product future? The depressing reality, after the jump.

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The Tata Nano has been making a splash recently as one of the world’s cheapest and most fuel efficient cars marketed towards developing economies where cars are generally considered a luxury. Now Fiat and Tata have announced plans to market the car in South America.

Behind Italy, Brazil is already Fiat’s second largest market so it only makes sense that Fiat would want to grab more market share in the ultra low-end category.

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This column highlights the top economic stories of the week.

While the Obamas and the Sarkozys have been celebrating the anniversary of D-Day in Normandy, this past weekend, Chrysler has its own D-Day to deal with. Indiana pension funds and consumer groups asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Sunday to stop the sale of bankrupt automaker Chrysler LLC to a group led by Italian carmaker Fiat,  while they challenge the deal. More on this story here…

Clean energy investment is down thanks to the economy but China appears to be unleashing a low carbon dragon, given its commitment to renewable energy development, it is grappling with massive international pressure to curb greenhouse gases.

Meanwhile, when it comes to trade, green search is on the rise, says Alibaba, China’s biggest online trading platform. Billionaire, George Soros, says that China’s economy will grow faster than people expect and so will its global economic influence.

The sustainability industry is maturing. Much as the “high tech” industry and the “.com” markets peaked with brilliant shiny, forward-thinking technology-based concepts in the 90’s,  the sustainable movement is showing signs that the love-fest of warmth and do-gooder intent is now shifting into the drudgery of the hard work phase. More on this story here.

The disappearance of honeybees does not bode well for the economic stability of commercial crops that rely on honey bees for pollination, and the $15 billion alone they add to the value of American crops each year. More on this story here.

Visit the Inspired Economist for more news as the next week unfolds.

This new column highlights the top economic stories of the week.

At the outset of this week, it looked like the Swine flu might be the largest influenza epidemic since the virus that wiped out a significant portion of the world’s population at the end of the first World War. Local economies everywhere have been affected given that people have stopped going out for fear of “The SuperFlu.”

Not to mention the fact that pork sales are down even though it’s common knowledge that the virus cannot be attained through food. Although, new cases of the flu have been spotted in Europe and Latin America, it looks as though things are easing up, and that the worst is over.

Jazzfest kicked off its 40th year anniversary last weekend under beautiful breezy blue skies.   Despite the global economic mood, the festival goers seemed more  upbeat this year as programs to rebuild the New Orleans economy are slowly taking root and beginning to yield visible results.

And there has been much talk about clean coal. West Virginia Mountain Top Removal coal protests heated up this week. Also, CNN Money interviewed George Soros this week. The billionaire says sometimes his firm’s investments conflict with his personal views. But that coal is a viable source of energy once you take the carbon out.

But the automobile industry definitely seemed to top the economic news this week. GE showed the way forward with advanced hybrids and EVs just as Chrysler’s woes have left the world wondering as to the future of GM. While Fiat’s proposed acquisition of GM’s European group signified hope for Chrysler, NPR is of the view that convincing consumers to buy cars from a bankrupt company would seem to be a Sisyphean task. Can Chrysler do it — or to be more precise, can Fiat, which never had much success in the American market, do it?

And what can we expect next week?

Well, for starters, President Barack Obama plans to roll out a set of proposals on international tax policies on Monday, in an announcement with potential implications for U.S. multinational firms. Let’s see what happens.

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Just a few hours after General Motors called for a standardized EV plug, one has been created!

Caroline Reichert, a spokeswoman for the Germany energy company RWE, said leading automotive and energy companies have reached an agreement for a standardized plug for electric cars. Some of the automakers include in that agreement are Volkswagen, BMW, Ford, General Motors, Fiat, Toyota and Mitsubishi.

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