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DaimlerChrysler backs away from spinoff talk Parent company says it has no plans to sell Chrysler group after CFO quoted as saying nothing has been ruled out. NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- DaimlerChrysler's chief financial officer Bodo Uebber would not rule out the sale or spinoff of its troubled U.S. arm Chrysler group during a conference held Wednesday, according to an Automotive News report, but the parent company later issued a statement saying it had no plans to sell the auto division. "We don't exclude anything here [including structural changes]," Uebber said. "We will do our analysis. Second, we will talk about measures. And third, we will draw our conclusions," Automotive News reported Uebber as saying. The report said Uebber repeated his answer when asked again whether DaimlerChrysler had put Chrysler group for sale, adding "I don't do any speculation." The world's fifth-largest carmaker reported Wednesday that the Chrysler group lost $1.47 billion in the third-quarter, down from a $393 million profit in the same period a year ago and warned investors the division could lose $1.2 billion in 2006. The company has assigned a team of senior executives to study seven major facets of the Chrysler group's business to try to improve profit margins by $1,000 per vehicle, according to the Automotive News report. DaimlerChrysler (up $2.35 to $54.68, Charts) maintained its 2006 profit forecast despite a big third-quarter operating loss by Chrysler and a lower contribution from aerospace group EADS. Rival automaker GM (down $1.48 to $34.71, Charts) reported quarterly earnings that nearly doubled forecasts Wednesday, while Honda Motor Co. (down $0.30 to $34.43, Charts) posted weaker-than-expected earnings on slower sales in Asia. DaimlerChrysler AG said later Wednesday it had no plans to sell Chrysler Group, reaffirming earlier statements made to the media. In a brief statement, the German car maker said it chose to reaffirm its previous statements due to speculation following a quarterly conference call on Wednesday with financial analysts and reporters. --from staff and wires reports ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
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