General Motors said on Dec. 12 it was idling 30% of its North American production "in response to rapidly deteriorating market conditions."
The struggling auto giant, which has been pleading for an emergency government loan to avert collapse, said the action comes in response to an industrywide 26% drop in November vehicle sales and a 41% drop for GM.
"The impact of these and recently announced actions to adjust production with market demand, will result in the temporary idling of approximately 30% of GM's North American assembly plant volume during the first quarter of 2009 and will remove approximately 250,000 units from production," GM said.
"The speed and severity of the U.S. auto market's decline has been unprecedented in recent weeks as consumers reel from the collapse of the financial markets and the resulting lack of credit for vehicle financing."
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2008
