GM Returns to the Stock Market: A Long Way to Reconstruction

Published in Yumiuri
(Japan) on 22 November 2010
by (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Alice Cwern. Edited by Gillian Palmer.
While undergoing corporate reconstruction, American motor enterprise General Motors (GM) returned to the New York Stock Exchange and took its first step toward breaking away from the bailout.

It has merely been a year and a half since GM unlisted its stock due to bankruptcy in June 2009. However, GM will be facing many obstacles ahead. It is now the critical moment which determines whether GM can completely recover and become independent from government aid.

After GM’s bankruptcy, it has technically become “government owned” as the U.S. government holds 60 percent of its stock, and the Canadian government holds 10 percent.

This time, the GM stocks on the market are those bought by the governments during the bailout. The price started out at $33 per stock, and it rose to $35 as the trading began. Investors' hype was the main cause of the increase in price.

GM was able to return to the stock market in such a short amount of time because it almost completely cleaned up its huge debt, and recovered its fiscal performance after carrying out big reconstruction, such as laying off its employees.

In the months between July and September, the company recorded profits in the fourth quarter as sales in emerging countries such as China are exploding, and sales in America have also recovered.

The United States government sold part of its shares and recovered around $11.8 billion. However, even though the portion of government-owned share decreased by 37 percent, the government remains the main shareholder.

The U.S. government has spent over $50 billion in order to rescue GM, and so far, it has recovered $10 billion. The government was able to retrieve a portion of the remaining $40 billion from selling its shares.

Although the government has thought of selling the remaining share to get the remaining $30 billion, it would not be feasible as it would hurt GM’s progress with reconstruction.

Still, the future is not optimistic for GM. GM still fails at lessening its dependence on sales from large vehicles such as SUVs and catching up on developing small eco-friendly vehicles. One of GM’s competitors, Nissan, is going to release LEAF, a new electric vehicle next month in Japan and America; on top of its huge selection of hybrid cars, Toyota is planning on launching the electric car it developed with America’s Tesla Motors in 2010. As the competition on eco-friendly cars is heating up, GM is soon launching its plug-in hybrid, the Chevy Volt. Since the success of this car [would] represent the rebirth of the company, people are paying close attention to its sales.

The Chinese market will become a main battlefield among all the motor makers, which will probably affect GM’s growing profits in China. How can it advance its technology and keep offering profitable vehicles to the market? GM’s real test of reconstruction has just begun.


GM再上場 本格再建へのはるかな道のり(11月20日付・読売社説)

 経営再建中の米自動車大手、ゼネラル・モーターズ(GM)が株式をニューヨーク証券取引所に再上場し、国有化を脱する一歩を踏み出した。

 2009年6月に経営破綻(はたん)して上場廃止になってから、1年5か月というスピード再上場だ。しかし、前途は多難だ。政府傘下から独り立ちし復活できるかどうか、これからが正念場と言えよう。

 GMは破綻後に、米国政府が株式の6割、カナダ政府が1割を保有する事実上の“国営GM”として再スタートした。

 今回、再上場されたのは、その新生GMの株だ。売り出し価格は1株33ドルに設定され、取引開始時の初値は35ドルだった。値上がりしての取引は、投資家の期待の高さをうかがわせる。

 短期間での再上場は、巨額な負債をほぼ一掃し、人員削減などの大リストラを徹底して業績をV字回復させたからだ。

 今年7~9月期まで、3四半期連続で最終黒字を計上した。中国などの新興国販売が急増し、米国での売れ行きも回復基調だ。

 米政府は今回、保有株の一部を売却し、約118億ドルの売却益を得た。この結果、GMへの米政府の持ち株比率は約37%に下がるが、筆頭株主にとどまる。

 GM救済に米政府は公的資金約500億ドルを投じたが、GMはこれまで100億ドルを返済した。

 政府は、今回の売却益を未回収分の約400億ドルの一部に充てる。残りの約300億ドルについても、保有株を売却して早期に全額回収したい考えだが、GMの本格再建が不可欠だ。

 しかし、先行きは楽観できまい。スポーツ用多目的車(SUV)など大型車頼みが改善されず、環境対応のエコカーや小型車開発の出遅れも解消できていない。

 競争相手の日産自動車は来月から日米で、電気自動車(EV)のリーフを発売する。トヨタ自動車はハイブリッド車の充実だけでなく、提携先の米ベンチャー、テスラ・モーターズと共同開発したEVを12年に発売する予定だ。

 エコカー競争が過熱する中、GMはプラグインハイブリッド車「シボレー・ボルト」を近く発売する。再生の象徴としており、この売れ行きが焦点となる。

 GMが好調な中国市場なども各メーカーの主戦場となっており、GMの牙城が揺らぎかねない。

 技術革新を進め、売れる車をどう市場に提供していくか。本格再建を目指すGMの試練はまだ始まったばかりである。
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