Market Currents

• Monday, November 16, 2009

• 09:46 AM Germany's promise to provide state aid to GM's European arm Opel no longer applies after GM backed out of the Magna International (MGA)-led, government-backed deal to take over the carmaker, German Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle says. "GM Chairman Ed Whitacre has said that his company can handle Opel, so this means that agreements and pledges that were based on other concepts are moot." 1 Comment

• Friday, November 6, 2009

• 10:40 AM GM Europe chief Carl-Peter Forster - who assured the industry that the automaker would close its sale of Opel, just before GM said it was keeping the unit instead - is leaving the company. Forster was expected to run the independent Opel after the planned sale to Magna (MGA). Comment!

• Wednesday, November 4, 2009

• 12:22 PM Analysts say the decision to hold on to Opel makes strategic sense for GM, especially now that it has unloaded its bad assets in North America. Still, GM will need to push for a deeper restructuring of Opel than thwarted suitor Magna (MGA) had planned if it wants to revive the unit. 1 Comment
• 08:23 AM German officials were outraged by GM's surprise decision to keep Opel, abandoning a long-expected sale to a Magna- (MGA) led group that the German government had agreed to back with €4.5B of state aid. GM said improving business conditions and the strategic importance of Opel had prompted the move, and expects restructuring Opel to cost about €3B. 3 Comments

• Tuesday, November 3, 2009

• 17:03 PM GM's board decides to restructure and keep Opel, undoing months of negotiations with a Magna- (MGA) led group. GM's board meeting came after the EU asked it to confirm it would still have sold Opel to Magna had it known the €4.5B in German aid would go to any buyer. 5 Comments

• Friday, October 23, 2009

• 10:43 AM John Smith, GM's chief negotiator on its Opel deal with Magna International (MGA), blogs that the sale won't be completed this week, since the GM board needs to discuss new developments at its Nov. 3 meeting. A few details remain to be ironed out with Russia's Sberbank, and GM hopes to assure the German economy minister that the Magna selection wasn't political. 2 Comments

• Saturday, October 17, 2009

• 19:21 PM German economy minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg says he's confident he can put to rest the EU's concerns over a sale of GM's Opel to Magna International (MGA). Late Friday, EC's Competition Commissioner said she had serious concerns about Germany's offer to provide €4.5B in aid. Comment!

• Tuesday, October 13, 2009

• 08:54 AM GM CEO Fritz Henderson says it's "quite possible" the company will finalize the €5B sale of its European arm Opel to a Magna-led (MGA) consortium this week. Henderson also says GM plans to conduct an IPO in the second half of 2010. Comment!

• Tuesday, September 29, 2009

• 08:26 AM GM's planned sale of Opel to a group led by Magna (MGA) faces fresh uncertainty after Spain urges European regulators to investigate the agreement, and Germany's Free Democrats, consistent critics of the deal, are poised to clinch a powerful position in Germany's new government. "This deal is not as near to completion as many people are trying to present," one auto analyst says. Comment!

• Monday, September 28, 2009

• 12:24 PM Election results in Germany indicated a slight rightward move to a center-right coalition, a win for Chancellor Angela Merkel with noticeable effects: Nuclear plant operators gain and solar stocks decline. Meanwhile, Merkel's designated coalition partner will likely approve of Magna International's (MGA) purchase of Opel from GM. Comment!

• Monday, September 14, 2009

• 09:06 AM European countries aren't the only ones worried about German aid for Magna's (MGA) Opel deal. An Opel trustee says €600M+ ($876M) of aid is earmarked "to modernize the Russian automotive industry," which means "German expertise will soon be transferred to Russia and jobs will be cut here later." 1 Comment
• 08:28 AM GM may finally have accepted Magna's (MGA) Opel bid, but the long-delayed deal still isn't in the clear. Germany's plan to provide €4.5B ($6.5B) in state aid has other European countries worried about favored treatment for GM's German plants and workers. 1 Comment

• Thursday, September 10, 2009

• 17:38 PM Ford (F) Chairman Bill Ford isn't concerned that his key supplier Magna International (MGA) is becoming a competitor by buying Opel from GM: "They clearly said they’ll respect our intellectual property and I believe them." Meanwhile, over at GM: Chairman Ed Whitacre in new ads and 60-day money-back guarantees. Comment!
• 10:01 AM GM agrees to sell a 55% stake in the New Opel to the consortium of Magna International (MGA) and Sberbank; GM will retain 35% and employees will get 10%. In coming weeks, GM will finalize the terms of the deal's financing package from the German government. (PR) Comment!
• 09:18 AM Germany's Merkel says she welcomes GM's decision to sell Opel to the Magna International (MGA) led consortium. Comment!
• 07:38 AM Caving in to pressure from the German goverment, GM will favor the Magna International (MGA) led group as a buyer for Opel, sources say. GM will discuss the decision at a press conference at 10 a.m. EDT in Berlin. (earlier) Comment!