Washington - The United States' three struggling carmakers
were required to submit viable recovery plans to Congress on Tuesday
if they had any hopes of getting their hands on federal aid as
monthly car sales in the United States tumbled more than 30 per cent.
Congressional leaders last month rejected the carmakers' request
for a total of 25 billion dollars to help them restructure and stay
out of bankruptcy. Lawmakers said they needed more concrete details
on the companies' recovery plans before considering the bail-out.
Ford Motor Co unveiled its 33-page business plan Tuesday morning,
requesting a 9-billion-dollar 'bridge loan' to rescue it from a US
economic recession that has sharply curbed US car sales.
'For Ford, government loans would serve as a critical backstop or
safeguard against worsening conditions, as we drive transformational
change in our company,' chief executive Alan Mulally said in a
statement.
Ford, which is generally regarded as in the best shape of the so-
called Big Three carmakers, said it was not certain to require the
cash infusion.
By contrast both GM and Chrysler LLC, who were to submit their own
plans later Tuesday, have said they may not have enough money to
continue daily operations beyond 2008.
The proposals come as sales plunged in November by 35 per cent
industry wide, compared to the same month in 2007. General Motors
Corp's sales dropped 41 per cent, Ford's fell 30 per cent and Toyota
Motor Corp was down 34 per cent.
Auto sales dropped in October to their lowest levels in 25 years
as consumers struggled to get car loans, but lawmakers have argued
the automakers' antiquated business model put them in dire straits
well before the current economic crisis began.
The heads of Ford, GM and Chrysler will appear before Congress for
hearings on Thursday and Friday to discuss their newest proposals.
The Big Three have warned that bankruptcy could cost millions of
jobs and insisted their recoveries, which primarily involve a shift
to more fuel-efficient vehicles, had been well under way before the
financial crisis struck.
Mulally offered to accept a salary of 1 dollar for one year should
Ford access the cash infusion. The company also said it would sell
its five corporate jets.
When the three chief executives first pleaded for a bail-out in
front of Congress last month, their arrival in Washington in private
jets provoked massive public outrage.
USA
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