Momentum is building in Washington to aid wounded US automakers with cash to help their finance arms and possibly even money to help seal a deal for General Motors Corp to acquire Chrysler LLC.
The US Department of Energy is trying to free up US$5 billion of a US$25 billion federal loan package to help make the GM-Chrysler deal work, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site on Monday.
And the White House said on Monday that the financing arms of the automakers might be eligible for federal help under the bank stock-purchasing portion of the US$700 billion financial rescue package.
Officials “at the highest levels” of the Treasury, Energy and Commerce departments have talked to top automaker executives on the topic, presidential spokeswoman Dana Perino said.
“It’s a possibility that they could qualify under it,” she said.
It would be up to US Treasury to determine whether any of the automaker financing arms could qualify, she said.
GMAC Financial Services, Chrysler Financial and Ford Motor Credit Co all could be eligible for help.
Also, Perino said that administration is “working as quickly as we possibly can” to finalize the regulations necessary to release the US$25 billion in congressionally approved loans to automakers, designed to develop new energy efficient technology but is seen as a way to help keep the companies afloat amid hard times.
She wouldn’t put a specific time frame on it.
She also wouldn’t rule in or out any further federal aid, beyond the loans, to stave off bankruptcy by any of the US automakers.
All three automakers are burning up cash as the US auto market downturn continues with no end in sight.
Analysts say GM and Ford are spending more than US$1 billion per month more than they bring in, while Chrysler’s figures are unknown because it’s a private company.
Analysts say GM could reach its minimum operating cash level of US$14 billion sometime next year. GM’s sales are down 18 percent, and the company has lost US$57.5 billion in the past 18 months, although much of that comes from non-cash tax accounting changes.
The government has an interest in making sure automakers survive because of huge pension plans that it would have to insure, and the huge number of jobs that could go away if one of the companies goes bankrupt.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS