GM plans to make small car in USA
As the June 1 restructuring deadline approaches, the company says it will produce a small car in a refurbished UAW-GM plant.
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- General Motors, with bankruptcy looming, pledged Friday to build a small car in the United States in an idled car plant that will be revamped.
The refurbished plant will produce 160,000 cars -- a mix of both small and compact autos -- a year.
"Small cars represent one of the fastest growing segments in both the U.S. and around the world," GM President and CEO Fritz Henderson said in a statement.
GM did not say exactly which model of car it will build in the facility, or where the plant will be located. The company declined to comment.
The automaker has been racing against the clock in recent weeks to come up with a restructuring plan by the June 1 deadline imposed by the federal government.
GM (GM, Fortune 500) said earlier this week that it would build a small car in the U.S.
The United Auto Workers union is concerned that GM could move jobs overseas in an effort to cut costs. The company's statement addresses the UAW directly.
"I would like to personally thank the UAW for agreeing to work with us to ensure our overall manufacturing competitiveness in the United States," said Henderson.
Currently, only a couple of GM models are built overseas and brought to the U.S. market. GM imported around 85,000 cars last year. But Henderson has said imports could rise to nearly 235,000 a year, roughly the output of a North American auto plant.
According to GM, 67% of GM cars and trucks sold domestically are built in the United States. With the addition of the new small car plant, GM estimated that percentage will rise to 70%. 
