General Motors continues to play hardball over European division
General Motors is rumoured to have called upon the governments of Spain, Britain and Poland to inject over $1.4 billion into the group's ailing European division which is dominated by Opel. This is an ongoing issue which had initially been sorted out months ago before General Motors suddenly decided the terms were not favourable and EU governments should be made to inject more capital into the operation.
Until now the German government has been leading talks on behalf of EU partners because of the significant presence of the GM European division in Germany. However, Lord Mandelson has entered the fray on behalf of the UK and the Vauxhall division which employs tens of thousands of workers in Britain. Whether the UK government, the Spanish government and the Polish authorities will agree to inject over $1.4 billion into the operation remains to be seen with General Motors keen to call their bluff.
Even though the European division has been on the verge of being taken over on a number of occasions there is even talk that the General Motors parent company when in fact retain the operation in the short to medium term. However, this is unlikely to happen as the disposal of non-US assets was a central part of the agreement with the US authorities which led to the bailout of the main business.
Share this..
Related stories
Inflation falls less than expected
The rate of inflation in UK, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), fell last month to 2.2% from 2.3% the previous month. Analysts had expected a more significant fall to around 1.9% and the recent strength would seem to indicate that the prospect of deflation is lessening by the month. The Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation measurement is already in negative territory although it edged up...
Read MoreWill Hershey's bid for Cadbury melt away?
There is new speculation regarding a potential offer for Cadbury by Hershey this morning with concerns that a potential offer may be starting to melt away. A review of the recent history of Hershey, which is controlled by a charitable trust, shows that the trustees of the charitable trust voted against a deal to sell the company to Wrigley back in 2002 for $89 a share. The current share price is $...
Read MoreInstitute of Chartered Accountants releases upbeat Business Confidence Monitor
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales has today issued its quarterly Business Confidence Monitor which indicates that UK GDP will rise by 0.5% in the third quarter of 2009. This is totally at odds with the vast majority of UK economists and UK analysts, as well as the Bank of England, and has surprised many people on the upside. The fact it comes at a time of renewed optimism...
Read MoreUK currency under severe pressure as debts begin to mount
After a very brief recovery on the currency exchange over the last few days the pound has encountered some serious selling pressure today falling to a seven-year low against the dollar. There is concern amongst traders and investors that the constant drip feed of taxpayer's money into various rescue packages is severely weakening the power of the UK and investment prospects.
The ban...
Will loyalty cards rescue the UK retail market?
Over the last few days we have seen a significant number of retail companies revamping and relaunching their loyalty cards. Tesco has spent in the region of £150 million on a relaunch of their Clubcard operation although this just appears to be the tip of the iceberg. There is a feeling among retailers in the UK that loyalty cards will not only attract more customers that they will in due course...
Read More