DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp on Tuesday asked the U.S. government to save it from failure by extending $12 billion in loans and another $6 billion in credit as part of an unprecedented federal intervention into the struggling auto industry.
GM said it needs Congress to extend $4 billion in financing this month and provide the rest of the $12 billion by March. The remaining $6 billion would be available if a year-long recession in U.S. auto sales drops beyond GM's now-lowered expectations
Without the immediate $4 billion cash infusion, the top U.S. automaker faces the risk of failure, a senior executive said.
"The first $4 billion is crucial," GM Chief Operating Officer Fritz Henderson said, adding, "There is no Plan B."
(Reporting by Kevin Krolicki; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)
