Chrysler and Fiat must merge or Liquidate

From The Ap
Chrysler and Fiat must merge to get more help for the Auto Task Force

Frustrated administration officials, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of Obama's announcement, said Chrysler has been given a 30-day window to complete a proposed partnership with Italian automaker Fiat SpA. The government will offer up to $6 billion to the companies if they can negotiate a deal before time runs out. If a Chrysler-Fiat union cannot be completed, Washington plans to walk away, leaving Chrysler destined for a complete sell-off....More

Chrysler and Fiat Must Merge To Get More Help

David Shepardson / Detroit News Washington Bureau

Washington -- The Obama administration will take a much more hands-on role in the restructuring of General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC, providing both with short-term aid but insisting on and overseeing immediate dramatic changes.

The administration has set strict timetables for GM and Chrysler to complete restructuring and if required changes are not made is likely to force the automakers into bankruptcy in the coming months.

The companies are likely to go even further in cutting staff and closing plants in order to prove their viability.

The administration's auto task force agreed to provide Chrysler with short-term aid for the next 30 days as the automaker works to complete a tie-up with Itay's Fiat SpA and said it would consider loaning the partnership up to $6 billion if a deal can be finalized.

But it warned that if Chrysler and Fiat cannot come to terms on a partnership, the Auburn Hills automaker would not get any more taxpayer money -- a move that would likely force the company's liquidation....more

Auto Task Force Bailout plan may be stricter than GM, Chrysler expected

By Sharon Silke Carty, USA TODAY
DETROIT — The Treasury Department will announce this week a preliminary plan to help General Motors and Chrysler that sets goals and deadlines that could be more ambitious than the companies themselves have proposed, according to a Capitol Hill staffer briefed on the plan but who wished to remain anonymous because the proposal is not yet public.
Treasury's preliminary plan also could include a bridge loan to Chrysler that's less than the $5 billion the automaker wants, the staffer said. Treasury says details still are being finalized.

A more structured version of the plan will be detailed in April, when additional loan money could become available to the two troubled companies.

The Bush administration in December set a deadline of March 31 for the automakers to prove they would be viable with the help of emergency government loans. But since then, the car market has hit the skids, and both GM and Chrysler have said they need even more money to survive.

GM and Chrysler are operating on a combined $17.4 billion in government loans approved by the Bush administration. The two automakers have asked the Obama administration for another $21.6 billion and say they need it soon.

The president's auto task force is demanding that the car companies get significant concessions first.

GM bondholders are balking at swapping two-thirds of their GM debt for stakes in the company.

Bondholders warned the government this weekend that if they can't strike a deal with the automaker, the car company might be forced into bankruptcy. A group representing bondholders says many are not willing to take stock in place of bonds because they don't believe GM will be survive long enough to make the shares valuable.

That would result in "dire consequences for the company, the tens of thousands of hard-working Americans that GM employs and the economy as a whole," bondholder advisers from investment firm Houlihan Lokey wrote.

And although the United Auto Workers, which represents U.S. hourly workers, has agreed to concessions, the Canadian Auto Workers union hasn't reached an agreement with Chrysler.

Chrysler says that if it cannot get nearly $16 an hour in wage and benefit concessions from the CAW, as well as a guarantee of $2.3 billion in loans from Canadian governments and a break on a tax dispute with Ottawa, it might have to pull out of Canada, the Associated Press reported Monday.

Canada's the source of Chrysler's U.S.-market minivans and line of big sedans that includes the Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger.

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Nardelli says more aid for financing would boost Chrysler sales

Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli called Tuesday for a second round of funding for the company's financial arm that would enable sales to customers who otherwise can't qualify for loans.

In an interview with CNBC, Nardelli also said Fiat would assume 35% of Chrysler's debt if the U.S. Treasury Department approves its proposed alliance with the Italian automaker.

Chrysler is operating with $4 billion in loans, and it's seeking $5 billion more.

But in the CNBC interview, Nardelli emphasized the effectiveness of a separate $1.5-billion loan the Treasury made to Chrysler Financial in January. Chrysler used that loan to subsidize zero-percent loans on new vehicles...More

President Barack Obama's Auto Task Force Visits Detroit

WASHINGTON -- The top advisers for President Barack Obama's auto task force will have a chance today to literally kick the tires on Detroit's struggling automakers before deciding how much federal aid they're worth.

The visit, spurred by invitations from the automakers, will cap two weeks of intensive research by the presidential task force into all aspects of the U.S. auto industry as it suffers the worst slump in four decades. After today's trip, the Obama administration has only days to address warnings from General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC of imminent bankruptcy and collapse without at least $7 billion in aid by the end of the month -- $5 billion for Chrysler and $2 billion for GM....More

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Obama auto task force to come to Detroit next week

WASHINGTON -- Leaders of President Barack Obama’s auto task force will travel to Detroit next week to meet with industry and labor officials worried about an imminent collapse of several companies absent federal aid.

An administration official said final details of the trip were still being worked out, but the task force visitors will include advisers Steven Rattner and Ron Bloom.


The task force has been conducting a string of meetings over the past two weeks to gather information and assess the depth of the problems facing the industry. General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC have said they need a total of $7 billion before the end of the month to avoid bankruptcy, and several suppliers are also on the brink.


Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne met with Rattner, Bloom and other members of the task force for two and a half hours today to discuss Fiat’s proposed alliance with Chrysler. Fiat has said it would take a 35% stake in Chrysler in return for sharing vehicle designs that could be used for several new Chrysler models.