General Motors emerged from bankruptcy so quickly it surprised even President Obama, who had expected the process to take up to three months. Instead it took about 40 days.
Now a reborn GM, shorn of much of its debt load, has a good chance to break into the clear and succeed.
Its overloaded brand portfolio has been reduced from eight to four, including Chevrolet – which has the popular Malibu sedan, made at the Fairfax plant in Kansas City, Kan.
About 400 of 1,300 company executives will soon be cut. GM's union, the United Auto Workers, has agreed to a contract with total compensation costs about 30 percent lower than before. Both moves should help the company thrive.
Government financing certainly expedited the bankruptcy process, with $50 billion in federal loans to keep GM going. Now the "new" GM must crank out profitable products and pay that money back.
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