This is where money is made and lost, but with uncertainty about the stability of America's largest banks and mounting worries about the state of General Motors, today was all about loss. For the first time, General Motors has admitted their substantial doubt over whether their company will be able to survive.
On that announcement, shares in the US car giant, plunged almost 18%, dragging the market down with it, US stocks closed yesterday at their lowest level for more than 12 years with Dow Jones down more than 4%.
Investors fear that GM's demise will send shock waves through the US economy.
"The first and the most immediate effect of the GM bankruptcy would be a massive layoffs, would be layoffs at General Motors and would also be layoffs throughout the whole chain, the whole supply chain of the auto industry. There have been a number of different estimates to what that would be, but I think it's safe to say in an already weak job environment that would, you know, bankruptcy with GM could create hundreds of thousands of new job losses over the next several months."
The sheer size of the General Motors and the amount of money / says it needs to survive is mind-boggling; GM's posted its losses of 82 billions dollars in the last three years. They've already borrowed 13 billion dollars from the US government to tide them over as they try to restructure the company, but now they say they need another 17 billion.
GM Europe which owns brands just as Saab and Vauxhall, is attempting to break free from its struggling parent company, they are asking the British government for 440 million pounds, the Spanish government for 600 million and even greater sum from Germany.
The car sales across the global are still nose-diving, if that to secure the cash that they so desperately need to survive, General Motors will need to convince Barack Obama and governments around the world that their business is still viable.
Richard Suchet, Sky News.
能麻烦Fiona或其他听友再听听'brands just/such as'这一段吗?我怎么也听不出是such呢?Thanks!