ID :
57967
Tue, 04/28/2009 - 15:50
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/57967
The shortlink copeid
GM Daewoo calls on S. Korea to provide financial aid
(ATTN: ADDS quote in para 6, details in final three paras)
SEOUL, April 28 (Yonhap) -- A senior official at GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co.
called Tuesday on the South Korean government to provide liquidity to the
troubled local unit of General Motors Corp., irrespective of whether the U.S.
parent continues to support the unit or not.
GM Daewoo has been negotiating with its main creditor Korea Development Bank over
the automaker's repeated call since early this year for 1 trillion won (US$741.3
million) in financial assistance.
But the state-run bank and the South Korean government have rebuffed the plea by
GM Daewoo, saying they will help the troubled firm only if GM gives its assurance
to keep the local unit afloat.
"It's meaningless to talk about who should first provide assistance," said the
official at GM Daewoo. "The only way is to save both sides together."
In Detroit, GM's chief financial officer Ray Young told Korean journalists that
the U.S. automaker has no plan to support GM Daewoo.
The GM Daewoo official backed up Young's remark, saying, "If the U.S. government
provides money to GM, the funds will be restricted to use in GM's businesses in
the U.S. There will no room for GM headquarters to support (GM Daewoo)."
GM Daewoo, South Korea's third-largest carmaker, made its initial request in
February for financial aid after exhausting a $2 billion credit line.
Hit by collapsing exports following the global economic slump, GM Daewoo has
closed or idled its three domestic plants as vehicle sales plunged and cash
reserves dried up.
GM Daewoo posted a net loss of 875.7 billion won last year, marking its first
annual loss in four years. Sales fell 1.6 percent to 12.3 trillion won.
In the first three months of this year, GM Daewoo's vehicle sales plunged 43.8
percent from the same period last year to 135,489 units.
Early this month, GM Daewoo Chief Executive Officer Michael Grimaldi reportedly
visited the South Korean presidential office seeking to secure the financial aid,
but the plea was apparently rejected.
Officials at GM Daewoo's public relations team weren't immediately available for
comment.
Grimaldi has warned that the company's financial position became "critical" in
the current quarter, saying, "We are monitoring our cash position very closely."
(END)
SEOUL, April 28 (Yonhap) -- A senior official at GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co.
called Tuesday on the South Korean government to provide liquidity to the
troubled local unit of General Motors Corp., irrespective of whether the U.S.
parent continues to support the unit or not.
GM Daewoo has been negotiating with its main creditor Korea Development Bank over
the automaker's repeated call since early this year for 1 trillion won (US$741.3
million) in financial assistance.
But the state-run bank and the South Korean government have rebuffed the plea by
GM Daewoo, saying they will help the troubled firm only if GM gives its assurance
to keep the local unit afloat.
"It's meaningless to talk about who should first provide assistance," said the
official at GM Daewoo. "The only way is to save both sides together."
In Detroit, GM's chief financial officer Ray Young told Korean journalists that
the U.S. automaker has no plan to support GM Daewoo.
The GM Daewoo official backed up Young's remark, saying, "If the U.S. government
provides money to GM, the funds will be restricted to use in GM's businesses in
the U.S. There will no room for GM headquarters to support (GM Daewoo)."
GM Daewoo, South Korea's third-largest carmaker, made its initial request in
February for financial aid after exhausting a $2 billion credit line.
Hit by collapsing exports following the global economic slump, GM Daewoo has
closed or idled its three domestic plants as vehicle sales plunged and cash
reserves dried up.
GM Daewoo posted a net loss of 875.7 billion won last year, marking its first
annual loss in four years. Sales fell 1.6 percent to 12.3 trillion won.
In the first three months of this year, GM Daewoo's vehicle sales plunged 43.8
percent from the same period last year to 135,489 units.
Early this month, GM Daewoo Chief Executive Officer Michael Grimaldi reportedly
visited the South Korean presidential office seeking to secure the financial aid,
but the plea was apparently rejected.
Officials at GM Daewoo's public relations team weren't immediately available for
comment.
Grimaldi has warned that the company's financial position became "critical" in
the current quarter, saying, "We are monitoring our cash position very closely."
(END)
