TTAC Called It, GM Denies It: China Ready to Eat American Automakers' Assets

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

When TTAC’s Bertel Schmitt first blogged the story that China had designs on Chrysler and GM, the resulting traffic melted our server. So we added another one. That one melted too. Our stalwart TTAC technical team tells me they’re now load balancing– and doing something about handling our traffic spikes. The view counter’s disappearance serves as a stark non-reminder of that terrible, wonderful day. And, of course, Bertel wasn’t just whistling Dixie (or whatever Germans living in China whistle). Bertel’s given us more inside dope today, as Bloomberg breaks the story into America’s MSM: “Dongfeng Motor Group Co., China’s third-largest automaker, said it had received proposals from investment banks to buy assets from General Motors Corp. as the U.S. carmaker tries to avoid running out of cash,” Bloomies reports with a hint, hint, nudge, nudge, knowwhatImean? “’We’ve gotten e-mails and investment materials asking us whether we would be interested in buying some of GM’s assets,’ Hu Xindong, head of investor relations, said by phone today. ‘So far, our management has not yet reviewed the issues and we have not yet responded.'” GM says it isn’t in talks with Dongfeng, but that’s not what the story says, is it?

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

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  • Rpol35 Rpol35 on Dec 03, 2008

    jgholt sort of beat me to the punch, as I initially thought "What a way to ditch that albatross known as Buick!" But then I realized if Buick is what's making GM money overseas, why sell it as it generates much needed cash to support the $$$ abyss that N.A. operations has become. The brands with no value need to go like Saab & Hummer. I still contend that Pontiac, Saturn and GMC have no market value as sale candidates. Why GM won't stop the madness and exit GMC, I'll never understand.

  • Stein X Leikanger Stein X Leikanger on Dec 03, 2008

    Chinese Poison Pill. What they are looking for, is a way to avoid any trade restrictions on their exports. By buying the brands (and they're not just buying car companies), they shift their operation from being an exporter-only, to being a multinational operator with indigenous plants. Much harder to enforce restrictions against. The offer will be irresistible - "we'll use some of the money we have earned to buy your struggling industries." And the plants will be turned into assembly farms for parts manufactured on the cheap in China. As the saying goes, a capitalist will sell you the rope you hang him with. And that GM denial is just disingenuous - if they're using middlemen, they can claim to "not be in talks with the Chinese."

  • Bertel Schmitt Bertel Schmitt on Dec 03, 2008

    @Stein: What a lot of people don't realize is that a lot of the parts going into cars made in the U.S. and Europe ALREADY ARE being made in China. Where did the parts industry go? To China.

  • Stein X Leikanger Stein X Leikanger on Dec 03, 2008

    @Bertel Oh, absolutely. People would be shocked to know that even the top end "luxury" brands are up to the roof antenna with Made in China.

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