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GM May Not Survive Unless Sales Rise, Analyst Says
Dec. 3 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. may not survive even with most or all of its request for $18 billion in government loans unless U.S. auto sales halt their decline, Credit Suisse Group AG analyst Chris Ceraso said.

“Even with substantial government funding, GM may still be dead in the water if sales stay in the 10 million to 12 million range for too much longer,” the New York-based analyst said in a note to investors today. He rates shares of GM, the largest U.S. automaker, “neutral.”

The analyst’s report comes a day after industrywide auto sales in November fell to a 10.2 million annual rate, the lowest in 26 years. The Detroit-based automaker’s sales for the year’s first 11 months tumbled 22 percent, compared with an industry decline of 16 percent.

Unless auto sales rebound, GM’s available funding might fall to $9 billion by next year’s second half and “the government may have to write another check,” Ceraso wrote.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aycVj7Ut870I&refer=us