Opel

[HarleyEarl]

Opel Sees Restructuring Pay Off Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: The carmaker has managed to improve its results in Europe As US parent company GM struggles, auto maker Opel is back in good financial health, nearly a year after undergoing massive restructuring. Opel, the German subsidiary of hard-hit US auto maker General Motors, is back in the black, after putting into place a savings program that will eventually cost the company 9,000 jobs. Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Last year, Opel workers took to the streets to keep their jobsIn a report based on internal group forecasts, German business newspaper Handelsblatt said Opel looks set to break even this year. Adam Opel, which comprises solely the German activities, was fractionally in the red, but the Opel brand itself, which includes factories outside Germany, is beginning to make money. Plant closings in North America Meanwhile, GM's European arm, GM Europe, is set to have more than halved its full-year losses this year to $300 million (256 million euros) thanks to a year-long restructuring program. The US auto giant is shutting down a number of plants in North America and slashing 30,000 jobs to help stem its losses, which totalled $3 billion in the nine months to September. Welcome news Only Swedish subsidiary Saab remains in the red, pushing down the carmaker's results in Europe. GM stopped publishing separate earnings reports for its European subsidiaries about a year ago. Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Just days ago, GM CEO Rick Wagoner announced job cutsThe report is positive for GM CEO Rick Wagoner, who desperately needs some good news after announcing plant closings and 30,000 job cuts just days ago.