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'New' General Motors hits the road with a plan to win back US drivers
10.07.09
The “new” General Motors was launched today when its chief executive Fritz Henderson delivered a message that what was once the world's biggest vehicle maker plans to woo back US consumers and repay the taxpayer for a $50 billion (£30.7 billion) bail-out.
Henderson was expected to announce that another 4000 white-collar jobs will be axed to streamline bureaucracy.
GM has emerged from bankruptcy in just 40 days, pipping rival Chrysler, which took 42 days to regulate its position.
The new firm is 61% owned by the US government and virtually debt free. It has slashed debt and healthcare costs by $48 billion and axed 40% of its dealerships across the US.
The Canadian and Ontario governments hold just under 12% of GM shares while the United Autoworkers trade union has 17.5%. The remainder is held by bondholders who converted part of their debt into equity.
GM will focus on just Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. Other marques like Hummer, Saturn and Saab have been hived off or sold.
“I'm very much looking forward to the point where we're operating in the clean air and the name of the company is not being associated with bankruptcy,” said GM sales head Mark LaNeve.
