Thread: General Motors to Invest $1 Billion in Brazil Operations --

General Motors to Invest $1 Billion in Brazil Operations -- Money to Come from U.S. Rescue Program

By Russ Dallen
Latin American Herald Tribune staff

General Motors plans to invest $1 billion in Brazil to avoid the kind of problems the U.S. automaker is facing in its home market, said the beleaguered car maker.

According to the president of GM Brazil-Mercosur, Jaime Ardila, the funding will come from the package of financial aid that the manufacturer will receive from the U.S. government and will be used to "complete the renovation of the line of products up to 2012."

"It wouldn't be logical to withdraw the investment from where we're growing, and our goal is to protect investments in emerging markets," he said in a statement published by the business daily Gazeta Mercantil.

Meanwhile, he cut the company's revenue forecast for this year by 14% to $9.5 billion from $11 billion, as the economic crisis began to cause rapid slowdowns in sales.

GM already announced three programs of paid leave, and Ardila added that GM Brazil "is going to wait and see how the market behaves in order to know what decision to take" with regard to possible layoffs.

For Ardila, the injection in Brazil's automobile sector of 8 billion reais ($3.51 billion) recently announced by the federal and state governments of Sao Paulo "has already begun to revive sales," which fell by 12% in October.

The executive said that the company will operate a "conservative" scenario in 2009 with an estimated production of 2.6 million units, and another more "optimistic" that contemplates sales of 2.9 million.

This year sales will reach 2.85 million vehicles, which represents a growth of 15% over last year.

Russ Dallen with EFE in Sao Paulo

http://www.laht.com/article.asp?Article ... ryId=12396

financial aid that the manufacturer will receive from the U.S. government

So, that's what GM thinks.

I'm not interested in outsourcing for NAFTA or paying for it.

Dixie

What gall! To ask for a BAILOUT that comes from American taxpayers, only to invest it in its Brazil operations! NO WAY!

GM can pick their operation and move it out of the US completely for all I care. Ford can follow. I have owned AMERICAN CARS all of my life our of loyalty to American manufacturers. The last three Fords I have had were horrible. Nothing but problem after problem. Finally all three ended up having transmission problems with very low mileage. My wife and I after almost 40 years ow owning automobiles purchased cars from foreign makers and are completely happy with them.