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December 2008 Entries

Dec31

GMAC Note Exchange Falls Short of Target





Auto News | By KERRY E. GRACE | Add Comment |

Struggling finance firm GMAC LLC said Wednesday that bondholders tendered $21.2 billion in notes in its bid to raise capital for its new status as a bank-holding company.

The lender's goal had been to raise $30 billion by converting 75% of its issued debt into preferred stock holdings. The offer expired Friday after having been extended four times.

Since then, GMAC has received commitments from the federal government for $6 billion in aid and already announced it would ease re...

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Dec31

Auto dealers offer cash back, low rates, 2-for-1 sales





Auto News | By Chris Woodyard | Add Comment |

As the worst sales year in more than a decade draws to a close, auto dealers are sweetening deals this week in a last-ditch effort to unload acres of cars.

Cash back, 0% interest rates and even wackier deals, such as buy-one-get-one-free, are being tried to squeeze out a few last sales.

General Motors added a last-minute inducement Tuesday by offering 0% to 4.9% financing through Monday on some remaining 2008 models. Financing arm GMAC said the loans were made possible by a $6...

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Dec30

GMAC's $5 Billion Financing Program Contract





Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

GMAC's $5 Billion Financing Program Contract
Below is the detailed financing program contract for GMAC and the United States Department of the Treasury. What I find interesting is the "Executive Compensation" section that states "golden parachute payment clause".

I don't believe this is going to simulate the economy like General Motors thinks. I just think we are going to give GM an additional $5 billion months down the road.  
Automotive Industry Financing Program, GM...

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Dec30

GMAC Expands Financing with Taxpayers money!





Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

GMAC Expands Financing with Taxpayers money!

GMAC LLC announced today that it will immediately be offering financing for more US consumers, This just after GMAC agreed to sell a $5 billion stake to the government yesterday.

The financing will be provided to retail buyers of new cars and trucks who have credit scores better then 620. This past October GMAC put restrictions on loans to borrowers with beacon scores of less then 700 to control its expositor during the credit crisis.

Credit scores range between 300 and 850, a...

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Dec30

With Needed Cash, GMAC Will Ease Lending Restrictions





Auto News | By EDMUND L. ANDREWS AND BILL VLASIC | Add Comment |

GMAC, the automobile financing company, said Tuesday morning that it would immediately resume financing to a wider range of car buyers, a day after the Treasury Department injected billions of dollars into the lender.

GMAC said in a statement that it would modify its credit criteria to include financing for customers with a credit score of 621 or above, a significant expansion of credit compared to the 700 minimum score put in place two months ago. GMAC had significantly cut back on t...

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Dec30

U.S. auto industry seen as most distressed in 2009





Auto News | By Chelsea Emery | Add Comment |

The auto sector is expected to be the most financially troubled industry in the United States next year, taking the top spot from the homebuilding group, according to a survey of restructuring and bankruptcy professionals released on Monday.

As the nation has slid into recession, auto and auto parts makers have been slammed by dropping sales, pushing industry stalwarts such as General Motors and their suppliers to the brink of bankruptcy.

Homebuilding was named the most troubl...

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Dec29

GM, Chrysler to Thin Dealer Ranks as U.S. Gives Aid (Update2)





Auto News | By Greg Bensinger | Add Comment |

General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC still haven’t figured out how to close thousands of dealerships, a promise in the plan they presented to Congress to win loans, starting with $4 billion that each is due to receive today.

The companies have been hoping that dealers would close or sell stores on their own, as industrywide sales have fallen to the lowest level in 17 years. The attrition hasn’t been happening fast enough, and the automakers have few tools at their disposa...

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Dec29

GMAC, Bank Holding Co. has no details on Debt Deal.





Auto News | By David Walker, LeaseTrader.com | Add Comment |

GMAC Bank Holding Co. has no details on Debt Deal.

GMAC LLC refused to reveal whether creditors had backed a $38 billion debt restructuring, despite the fact that the outcome isn't expected to disrupt the efforts by the auto and real-estate lender to become a bank holding company.  The lender, owned by General Motors Corp. and a group of private equity holders led by Cerberus Capital Management, stated that the deadline for restructuring passed at 11.59 pm Friday. This is the forth time GMAC had extended the deadline in an effort to win ...

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Dec29

Unions Look for New Life in World of Obama





Auto News | By STEVEN GREENHOUSE | Add Comment |

Through three decades of decline, union leaders have been predicting a renaissance that has not come. But labor invested more than $300 million to help elect Mr. Obama and enlarge the Democratic majority in Congress, and it expects both to enact legislation that will make it easier for millions of workers to unionize.

Skeptics say the outlook for labor is as bleak as ever. Business leaders and Congressional Republicans have vowed to block the new legislation, and Mr. Obama might want ...

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Dec24

Auto stock drops for a second day





Auto News | By Bryce G. Hoffman | Add Comment |

General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. shares declined for a second day Tuesday as Wall Street continued to absorb the details of the federal government's bailout of the domestic automobile industry.

The White House's $17.4 billion bailout of GM and privately held Chrysler LLC prompted key ratings agencies to slash their outlook for America's carmakers Monday, while fears of a deepening recession have made an already bleak situation that much worse.

As a result, GM's stock lo...

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