GM trounces 2nd-qtr estimates, shares surge

(Reuters) - By Jui Chakravorty



DETROIT, July 31 - General Motors Corp on Tuesday said it posted a quarterly profit that trounced Wall Street estimates as it benefited from cost-cutting and growing sales overseas, sending shares up as much as 6 percent.


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GM, Ford, Toyota Back New U.S. Mileage Goals to Stave Off Stricter Rules

(Bloomberg) -- Automakers are embracing legislation
in the U.S. House that would raise fuel-economy standards,
abandoning years of resistance because of concerns they might
otherwise be forced to accept even tougher measures.

An industry group representing General Motors Corp., Ford
Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp. and six other auto companies is
backing a bill that would require a more than one-quarter
increase in average vehicle mileage by 2022. Competing measures
in the House and Senate mandate stricter requirements that would
compel earlier compliance and probably cost the industry more.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Corporate Bond Risk Soars by Record Amount as Investors Flee Company Debt

(Bloomberg) -- The risk of owning corporate bonds
increased by the most ever in Europe and Asia on concern banks
and hedge funds face widening losses on subprime mortgages and
leveraged buyouts, according to credit-default swap traders.

A sell-off in the U.S., Asia and emerging markets extended
to Europe, where the cost to protect company debt approached the
record high in 2005 when General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co.
lost their investment-grade credit ratings. Deutsche Bank AG's
risk premium jumped to five times the amount on June 1.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

GM, Hilton, Huntsman, JDA, Marriott, Starwood Hotels: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes on U.S. exchanges.
Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names. Share
prices are as of 9:35 a.m. in New York.

General Motors Corp. (GM US) fell $1.69, or 4.5 percent, to
$36.29. The largest U.S. automaker was cut to ``peer perform''
from ``outperform'' by Bear Stearns & Co. after GM said June U.S.
sales declined. Separately, Deutsche Bank AG cut its full-year
earnings estimate for GM to $2 a share, a 30 percent reduction,
after ``surprisingly weak'' U.S. sales in June.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

WRAPUP 3-U.S. housing sector, factory orders sag in May

(Reuters) - WASHINGTON, July 3 - Pending sales of existing
U.S. homes hit the lowest level in more than five years in May
and factory orders dipped modestly, according to data on
Tuesday that suggested the economy was struggling.




In addition, Ford Motor Co. , Chrysler Group and
General Motors Corp. reported lower U.S. sales for June
as high gas costs, fierce competition and the housing slump
took a toll on the industry.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

US STOCKS-Indexes climb on lower bond yields

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, June 25 - U.S. stocks rose on Monday as
data on existing-home sales were in line with analysts'
forecasts, allowing investors to focus on the recent pull-back
in bond yields and the Federal Reserve's policy-setting meeting
this week.




General Motors Corp. gave a boost to the Dow after
Goldman Sachs lifted its rating on shares of the largest U.S.
automaker.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Senate close to deal on auto fuel efficiency

(Reuters) - Negotiators haggled over final details of an agreement based on a bi-partisan proposal that still left automakers and their allies in Congress dissatisfied, according to lawmakers familiar with the talks.




Struggling General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group lobbied fiercely for compromise legislation that would reform the 30-year-old Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, program.


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GM aims to sell 100,000 Chevrolets in Germany: paper

(Reuters) - Chevrolet's European sales rose 15.6 percent in 2006 to more than 341,000 cars, including 23,132 in Germany, helping to push General Motors' overall European sales over the 2 million mark for the first time.




Sommer said Chevrolet planned to increase the number of dealers in Germany over the next two years to between 350 and 360, from 300 now, and the number of outlets to 600, from 450.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

U.S. Stocks Rally, S&P 500 Rises Most in Eight Weeks; GM, Alcoa Pace Gains

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rallied and the
Standard and Poor's 500 Index posted its best weekly gain
since April after bond yields fell from a five-year high
and the Federal Reserve said the economy is growing without
fueling inflation.

General Motors Corp., Alcoa Inc. and Intel Corp.
helped push the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average to
within 0.5 percent of records. Exxon Mobil Corp., the
world's largest oil company, led energy shares to the best
gain among 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 as crude
prices climbed to the highest since September.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News