The GM logo stands at the company's plant in Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil, on Jan. 22, 2019.ROOSEVELT CASSIO/Reuters
General Motors Co. said on Monday the automaker has suspended its quarterly cash dividend on its common stock and its share buybacks to save cash in the face of the coronavirus crisis that has severely hurt global automobile sales.
Shares of GM were 1.4 per cent lower at US$21.65 before the bell.
“We continue to enhance our liquidity to help navigate the uncertainties in the global market created by this pandemic,” GM chief financial officer Dhivya Suryadevara said.
GM, which has been forced to shut some production in North America along with other carmakers, had earlier said it has postponed work on at least half a dozen future models to conserve cash during the pandemic.
GM as well as rivals Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. have taken steps to reopen North American vehicle manufacturing operations in early May, but the move has met with opposition from the companies’ labour union that says it is “too soon and too risky” to reopen auto plants.
The No. 1 U.S. automaker also said on Monday it had extended a three-year revolving credit agreement for US$3.6-billion to April, 2022.
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