General

GM scotches sale of Opel

Automaker’s decision to bail on deal is a big blow for Canadian-based Magna, and infuriates German government

This could get ugly. Not only has General Motors led Canada’s Frank Stronach down the garden path, it has incurred the wrath of the German government, most notably Chancellor Angela Merkel, who had supported Stronach’s bid for Opel, GM’s European carmaker. GM figures it can make a go of Opel on its own. But German lawmakers differ, arguing jobs are in jeopardy now that the sale of 55 per cent of Opel to Magna – Stronach’s company and Canada’s largest auto parts maker – is off the table. Berlin is now calling on GM to repay 1.5 billion euros it extended to keep Opel afloat during the sale process, a period during which a bankrupt GM was restructuring.

Bloomberg

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