Beleaguered American auto maker General Motors is in emergency talks with its lenders over a multi-billion dollar debt-for-equity deal which could save the company from filing for bankruptcy, a media report on Sunday said.
"We probably could have sold another 20-30 per cent if there was an easy availability of vehicle finance. People continue to be interested in buying cars, but the sheer lack of finance is a concern.The buyer has to decide what his money can get him. I don't feel threatened that a customer of Chevrolet is going to buy the Nano instead," says Karl Slym, president and MD, General Motors India.
General Motors is now worth just a few millions in stock valuation whereas the auto maker boasted of a market capitalisation of nearly $11 billion, exactly a year ago. With the iconic auto maker all set to steer itself into bankruptcy, each share of the company is just than a penny in value. At the closing of the market on May 29, the scrip of General Motors was available for as low as 750 cents and the market capitalisation stood at $457.2 million.
The company currently sells various vehicle brands in the country ranging from hatchback Spark to sports utility vehicle Captiva, priced between Rs 333,000 and Rs 25.71 lakh (Rs 2.57 million), respectivley, (ex-showroom Delhi).
According to the daily, the move comes as the government is getting ready to lift another auto maker Chrysler from bankruptcy protection 'as soon as next week'. Attributing to a source, The Washington Post said under the GM draft bankruptcy plan, the company would receive just short of $30 billion in additional federal loans.
The company had identified some emission-related issue with Tavera and some quality issue with Sail.
"Out of the total sales, we feel that Chevrolet Spark would enjoy major share in total car sales for this year as small cars continue to have largest share in passengers cars market in the country," General Motors India Director (Operations) S Garg told reporters in Chandigarh on Friday.
So far, the current year has not been great for the leading car exporters from India. In the top five list of exporters -- Hyundai, Ford, Maruti Suzuki, General Motors and Volkswagen -- it is only Hyundai which is clocking a growth.
General Motors India, 100 per cent subsidiary of General Motors Corporation, on Thursday said the company's entry level Chevrolet Spark has crossed the mark of 3 million customers globally.
The mini car is likely to be based on the auto maker's Beat concept, showcased at the New York Auto Show two years ago. It would offer the option of diesel or petrol engines and will be the third small car in GM's offering in the country after Spark and Aveo U-VA. India would be the company's export hub for the mini car, said Karl Slym, president and managing director, General Motors India.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis have directed stringent action in the case of a car accident involving a 17-year-old boy, in which two persons were killed, the Pune police chief said on Tuesday.
The US government, that invested $49.5 billion in the Detroit automaker to save thousands of jobs at the height of the financial crisis five years ago, lost about $10 billion, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said on Monday.
The note mentioned "domestic problems".
General Motors, the world's largest automaker, said it would buy South Korea-based Daewoo Motors' assembly unit in India for an undisclosed price.
General Motors India is in talks with the creditors Daewoo Motors India to acquire the car assembly unit of the failed carmaker and has set a timeframe to clinch the deal.
GM will join a very short list of S&P 500 companies, including Hershey Co and American Water Works Co, with women serving as CEO and CFO.
India is a market for low-priced cars with low running costs. The global majors don't have models that fit the bill; only Maruti and Hyundai have successful entry-level models, observes T N Ninan.
Operations of several top companies, located in central and south Gujarat, continued to be affected on Friday with torrential rains lashing several parts of Gujarat for close to a week.
Maharashtra has the highest share - over 16 per cent -- in the motor insurance premium (own damage category) of about Rs 17,098 crore (Rs 170.98 billion) collected as of 2012-13 in the country, whereas Gujarat tops in terms of annual growth rate, an Assocham study said.
Leading manufacturers, including Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and General Motors, are planning to raise prices of each of their models starting from the last week of this month or early next month.
Production was halted at the Halol plant of General Motors in Gujarat because of heavy rains, a senior company official said on Thursday.
The Spark will be available for Rs 2.79 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) compared with its usual price of Rs 3.32 lakh. Hyundai Motor India (HMIL) will offer a discount of up to Rs 40,000 across various models till the end of next month aiming to cash in on the festive season.
General Motors Asia-Pacific on Friday announced the appointment of chief operating officer, Rajeev Chaba, as president and managing director of General Motors India with effect from June 1.
R Balendran, director and vice-president, corporate affairs, General Motors India, said on Wednesday that the company might bring in the SUV as either a completely built unit or a completely knocked down unit.
General Motors India on Monday launched a new variant of Chevrolet Tavera priced at Rs 599,000.
Automobile manufacturers are likely to report strong numbers for the September quarter of Financial Year 2023-24 (Q2 FY24), riding on growth across segments and offset by a marginal drop in overall two-wheeler (2W) volumes. Higher average selling price (ASP) year-on-year (YoY), which was necessitated by price hikes taken by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and an improved product mix will also aid revenues and margins. Moreover, commodity prices are down on a YoY basis, leading to higher margins in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda).
Tata Consultancy Services' (TCS') contribution to the overall market capitalisation (mcap) of listed Tata group companies has slipped below 50 per cent for the first time in over a decade. This has happened amid a rally in other Tata stocks, led by smaller companies, even as TCS, the group's largest company by mcap, has lagged. In recent quarters, Tata's listed firms have emerged as leading performers on the bourses, with the group's combined mcap crossing Rs 30 trillion early last week - a first for a private sector conglomerate.
The new financial year started on a mixed note for car makers.
American automaker Ford on Thursday said that it had withdrawn plans to manufacture electric vehicles (EVs) in India and it won't invest in the country under the performance-linked incentive (PLI) scheme. "After careful review, we have decided to no longer pursue EV manufacturing for exports from any of the Indian plants. "We remain grateful to the government for approving our proposal under the PLI and for being supportive while we continued our exploration. "Ford India's previously announced business restructuring continues as planned, including exploring other alternatives for our manufacturing facilities.
MNC auto firms that sold cars below cost, at a loss, thereby paying lower excise duty are prime targets.
General Motors India on Wednesday launched three new cars in the Indian markets
General Motors India, the 100 per cent subsidiary of the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, has achieved break-even and become a profitable company, a top company official said on Monday.
General Motors India on Tuesday introduced a new version of its multi-utility vehicle Chevrolet Tavera, the Elite range even as the company prepares to rev up capacity at its Halol plant to meet rising demands.
A government-instituted panel which probed the extent of non-compliance by General Motors in re-fitting pre-approved engines on Tavera models sent for inspection to meet specified emission norms, submitted its report late on Monday evening, holding the company responsible for corporate fraud.
General Motors Corp. plans to source $1 billion worth of automobile parts from India each year by 2008 as part of cost-cutting measure at the world's biggest automaker, a senior executive at its local subsidiary said Friday.
