GM vows to repay $6.7 billion

[rickaren]

GM vows to repay $6.7 billion in bailout money by June

Posted on Tuesday, January 26th, 2010 at 12:53 PM EST.(Employee News)

General Motors Co. pledged Monday to repay a U.S. Treasury loan that has helped the company survive, and named interim CEO Edward Whitacre as its permanent chief executive, Christian Science Monitor reported.

The move to repay $6.7 billion debt by June signals that America’s largest carmaker may be turning a corner out of crisis faster than analysts had expected, even though many challenges remain, the paper said. The selection of Mr. Whitacre, meanwhile, means that the carmaker now has certainty about top management, the Monitor said.

The Obama administration and some analysts cast the GM moves as positive, the paper said. Still, Monday’s news reflects a mixed picture for the firm and for U.S. taxpayers, the Monitor noted. The Treasury Department has dished out nearly $50 billion in aid to keep the automaker from possible liquidation in bankruptcy. Most of that money has been converted into an investment stake in GM, and some industry analysts doubt whether the Treasury will recoup the full amount, the paper said.

The stepped-up plan to repay debt indicates the priority that Whitacre places on removing the bailout stigma from GM, as the company seeks to rebuild consumer trust in its brands, the paper said. The company has already repaid $1 billion of the $6.7 billion in debt, the story said. (Christian Science Monitor)