New York - In the largest industrial bankruptcy ever seen in US history, General Motors (GM) Corp., the top US automaker and once the world's largest corporation, filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday.
The Detroit-based company, for decades a symbol of American manufacturing supremacy, corporate culture and even lifestyle, filed a Chapter 11 petition to the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
The collapse of the century-old auto giant came at a time when the US is experiencing the worst economic recession since the Great Depression. Just a month ago, Chrysler LLC, the country's third largest automaker, took the same path.
Hoping to reemerge from bankruptcy protection as a new, leaner company within 60 to 90 days, GM will close 11 US factories and idle three others to slash its operating costs.
It has been looking to cut 21 000 factory jobs from the 54 000 workers it now employs in the United States.
The GM bankruptcy, along with the previous one of Chrysler, will also lead to the loss of hundreds of dealers and suppliers as well as hundreds of thousands of jobs, dampening US President Barack Obama and his administration's efforts to stimulate the slumping economy.
However, an overnight statement from GM China said that the impact of its US parent's bankruptcy "will be minimal to our China business including our operations and sales.
"We will maintain our normal business operations, including our suppliers system, dealers, warranty and customer support operations," it added.
