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General Motors Co. is capping its remarkable journey back from near-extinction with a record share sale that will reap as much as $23-billion (U.S.).

But it will likely take years for GM, reborn as a public company, to fully repay the massive government bailout that brought the iconic auto maker back from the brink.

That isn't deterring investors, who are showing a surprisingly strong appetite for GM shares, forcing the company to boost the size and the price of its historic offering at the 11th hour - to $33 a share from an initial estimate of $26 to $29.

GM is selling 478 million common shares for $15.8-billion. Preferred shares and various extra allotments for underwriters are expected to boost the total proceeds to as much $23.1-billion, making it the largest initial public offering of all time.

The story of GM's success is simple. It's making money again - $2-billion in the second quarter - after shedding massive amounts of debt and reworking union contracts while in bankruptcy protection. The company lost an eye-popping $88-billion in the five years before it filed for bankruptcy protection last June.

And it's thriving the same way it always has in good times - by selling larger cars and sport-utility vehicles. The company's hottest selling cars include Canadian-made crossovers such as the Chevy Equinox and GMC Terrain. Also selling well are the Buick LaCrosse sedan, Cadillac SRX luxury crossover and the larger GMC Acadia and Chevrolet Traverse SUVs.

The Canadian and Ontario governments will pocket about $1.15-billion in the IPO, sticking to a pledge to sell 20 per cent of their combined stake in GM. That leaves the two governments with about 9.3 per cent of the company, down from the current 11.7 per cent.

GM has already repaid $1.3-billion in loans to Ontario and Ottawa. The two governments invested a total of $9.5-billion.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty vowed Ottawa would get out of the auto business "as quickly as appropriate" by selling more shares over time.

"We're very pleased that the intervention has worked with the … reservation of a substantial number of jobs - in fact, the preservation of the auto industry and the auto parts industry in Canada," he told reporters in Ottawa.

Ottawa opted not to sell additional shares, as did the U.S. government and the United Auto Workers, which own 60.8 per cent and 20 per cent of GM respectively before the IPO.

Mr. Flaherty would say only that it "looked at all variables" and opted to stick to selling just 20 per cent for now. GM shares would have to hit nearly $50 before Ottawa and Ontario could get all their money back.

Analysts say GM's quick turnaround is impressive, particularly at a time when industry sales are at historically low levels.

The auto maker is raking in big profits, even with industry-wide vehicle sales at near Depression-levels of roughly 11 million a year, pointed out David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich. The prospect of even bigger profits when Americans resume buying cars at rates seen in the past makes investors hopeful that GM shares will take off.

"That's what Wall Street responds to," Mr. Cole said.

By shedding rich labour contracts, pension and health commitments and a massive debt load, GM has lopped roughly $6,000 off the cost of every vehicle it produces, he said. And that's given the company a competitive edge over many of its foreign rivals for the first time in decades.

"When you dramatically lower your break-even point in a high fixed-cost business, it's very predictable," Mr. Cole remarked. "What they really have is a profit-making machine."

Wayne Adlam, a former investment banker and now a lecturer at the University of Western Ontario's Richard Ivey School of Business, agreed GM is making good vehicles again.

But he said the "governments are still way underwater on their investment." And that shows just how massive the government bailout was, he added.

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