GM CEO says bankruptcy 'could work' but would be too risky. (
WSJ)
è ovviamente un discorso un po' più complesso:
By JOHN D. STOLL
General Motors Corp. Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said Tuesday the company remains confident it can restructure outside of bankruptcy court and warned that filing for bankruptcy could lead management and the board to lose considerable control.
Mr. Wagoner, speaking to reporters in Washington, said that bankruptcy
"could work but it might not work." The executive said that bankruptcy is loaded with risks, including a potential collapse in revenue, and "99%" of GM's problems can be solved without filing. He said GM is still convinced "consumers will shy away" from a bankrupt company.
Richard Wagoner Jr
He also said bankruptcy would be expensive, and
the U.S. government would need to provide so-called debtor-in-possession financing, known as DIP. "There is no DIP financing outside of the U.S. government, he said.
The executive, at GM's helm since 2000, said the auto maker holds hope that the economy will rebound in 2010, allowing GM to start repaying the $13.4 billion loan it received from the Treasury Department in December. He said GM will still need billions more in funding from the government.
"Living hand-to mouth is not fun for anybody," he said. He said the company's expectation for economic growth, currently estimated by GM at 2%, is a bit lower than the Obama administration's current projections. "Our number for 2010 is a little less than (the administration's), but we hope they're right."
In relation to the auto industry, where demand has slowed to multi-decade lows, Mr. Wagoner said that a "cash for clunkers" program, subsidized by the government, could help spur demand. He noted these scrapping programs have had success in other markets, including Germany, where incentives given to buyers willing to turn in an older vehicle in order to buy a new one helped boost sales considerably in February.
The auto maker is working with the United Auto Workers and bondholders on deals that would significantly reduce debt and the amount of cash spent on health care. Mr. Wagoner said these talks need to be resolved soon, and said that government may be able to help provide "fair value" for bondholders.
He declined to give a specific or detailed characterization of the negotiations with these parties, but said the talks are ongoing and proposals have been traded. "This isn't just two-handed poker" he said, referring
to the multiple stakeholders that are negotiating concessions on behalf of the auto maker.
Mr. Wagoner said that the UAW's recent deal with rival
Ford Motor Co. is not sufficient to meet GM's cost-cutting needs. "The Ford program does not meet our needs at all," he said. Ford will save about $500 million annually in hourly costs, thanks to a deal with the UAW that cuts wages to $55 an hour and makes other cuts, and it reduces the amount of cash Ford needs to contribute to a health-care trust, known as a Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association, or VEBA.
GM's top executive addressed the hurting U.S. auto supplier base as well, saying that "the situation is getting more precarious," due to lower sales and dwingling cash reserves. He said the auto maker has told President Obama's auto task force that the government needs to provide "credit insurance" to the suppliers, meaning the government would guarantee certain promised revenue from auto makers that have not yet been received from auto makers because of the traditional timing of payments.
Mr. Wagoner said the auto maker didn't favor a system under which the car companies would speed up payments to suppliers.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123729863349255921.html?mod=yahoo_hs&ru=yahoo
Mica penso che l'hanno risanata, ma tutti gli attori sembrano andare in una direzione di compromesso... e tanto paga pantalone... 
