An impressive 23% gain has been officially released by car company General Motors for its January figures. The company’s total sale of about 178,896 cars is an impressive boost when compared to last year’s figures.

General Motors said that their pick up and crossover sales are the strong points that led to the increased figures. According to the press release, the car company’s sales for its fleets have suffered a 7% decrease due to the 11% decline in rental fleet sales. Crossovers increased by 35%, trucks at 34%, and cars at 39%.

According to the vice president of the Sales Operations division in the U.S., Don Johnson, they are optimistic that the month of January has given then a good start for the year. Johnson added that the gains are widespread in all segments with the sales from their new models leading the hike to success.

The combined sales coming from models Silverado HD, Cruze, Chevrolet Equinox, Volt, Regal, Buick LaCrosse, Terrain, GMC Sierrra HD, CTS Coupe, CTS Wagon, and Cadillac SRX have given the car company an impressive 31% increase in gains. In January alone, the retail sales figures have increased by almost 61%.

Due to the high demand for GM models Buick regal, CTS Coupe, and Chevrolet Cruze, the total sales for these passenger car models rose to 15% for January. As for the company’s roster of eco-friendly crossovers, the Chevrolet Equinox has led the 31% increase in total sales. Johnson adds that the company’s average-sized crossovers like the GMC Acadia are also starting to rake in big sales figures because of its appeal to the customers in terms of style, functionality and fuel efficiency.

Slym explained that in the next three to four years, the popularity of light commercial vehicles will rise up to 24%, a rate wherein a foreseeable market growth is expected and wherein mini trucks in the sub-one ton and one ton categories, can be priced aggressively.

India manufactures a very small quantity of light trucks.  So far, Tata is the only brand who dominates the light truck market by almost 90%.   The others, namely Force Motors Trumpas, Bajaj Auto GC Max, Piaggio Ape, and Mahindra & Mahindra Gio, have small shares in the market.  Soon, General Motors will join in the light trucks markets of India too.

The three passenger vehicles from General Motors are as follows: the Chevrolet Spark, Chevrolet Tavera, and the Chevrolet Beat.

India’s demand of the light trucks coincides with its rapid growth in the economy, which directly gives rise to the demands of product transportation.  More and more automobile companies take interest in the light truck demands of India, such as the Mahindra & Mahindra which released their Gio mini trucks sometime last year.  Japanese automobile company Nissan, who partnered with India’s Ashok Leyland, will also join the rally as well as Dailer, a British automobile company.

The company’s ability to pay back ahead of time is a sign that GM’s financial plan is working, says GM CEO Ed Whitacre. This is definitely good news for GM investors around the globe. Whitacre also stressed on the importance of letting their investors reduce their equity investments.

GM’s sales shot up to 36%, though, compared to the previous year. The popular crossover models including the 5th generation Camaro, the mid-sized Malibu and Lacross, and the range vehicles Equinox, Traverse, Acadia, and SRX all contributed to the increase in sales growth.

Based on the recent press release of GM, Fairfax will serve as the company’s primary source of the next generation of Malibu models. Detroit Hamtramck, which currently produces Cadillac DTS and Buick Lucerne, will also be provided with equipment to produce the Malibu. Also stated in the press release is the company’s assurance that the Chevrolet will be able to meet its market demand.

GM’s Malibu-related investments totaling $136 M in Fairfax and $121 in Detroit cover machinery, equipment, tools and facilities.

The program is operated in collaboration with U.S. Bank. Pilot runs of the leasing program include vehicles of GM sold in Ohio, Michigan, Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York. The new gen Cadillac SRX is being offered for lease nationally by the bank. The initial run will go through August 31, 2009.

GM was forced to cut their leasing program last year due to the drop in profits. Consumers also showed low demand for vehicles because of the recession. The economy is starting to fix itself and the demand for cars has been up recently. According to statistics that monitors the demand in the leasing market, there was a 22% jump in the market demand for the Escalade of Cadillac. The Enclave from Buick has an 18% rise.

Although GM sales was doing okay without the leasing program, the car manufacturer believes that they have a sector which really needs it. The crossover Cadillac SRX really adds excitement to the luxury leasing program since it is offered nationwide.

The 2009 models that will be initially offered are the Traverse and Malibu from Chevrolet, and the CTS from Cadillac. Aside from the Cadillac SRX, other 2010 models like the LaCrosse and Enclave from Buick, GMC Acadia, and Equinox from Chevrolet will be offered

The monthly fees of the customers will depend on how much they put as down for the vehicle with the first month of payment due upon signing. The rates are expected to be very competitive. The company is also not asking for any security deposits.

Robert Gerber, the judge who ruled on the case, described it as a necessary step to prevent the death of a critically ill patient. The court has given a stay of four days which permits a close as early as July 10.

The sale will transfer in essence all of the properties of General Motors to the NGMCO Inc. which was established by the Department of Treasury. NGMCO will be known as General Motors Company once the sale is completed and will operate through the corporate GM and all of its sub brands.

Fritz Henderson will be the CEO of the newly established GM. The cost of operations will also be competitive in terms of its structure with standing agreements with the UAW and CAW, organizations of Auto Workers in United States and Canada, respectively.

The new status of GM will allow it to operate and gain profits at lower volume of productions. GM attributes this foresight to the cleaner debt sheet and better balance sheet post bankruptcy.

Daewoo, Holder, and other subsidiaries of GM outside the of U.S. will be acquired by the new GM but continue to operate without any interruption.

The Department of Treasury will be owning about 60.8% of the new company while 17.5% goes to UAW, and 11.7% to the Ontario government and CAW. Bond holders of the old GM will be getting 10% of the stake.

The picture is not that clear especially when one considers the effort of GM in developing the Volt and the Buick crossover. But with the announcement of General Motors that it will be withdrawing from its partnership with Toyota at the NUMMI or New United Motor Manufacturing Incorporated, the move of re-branding the Prius may be a logical move.

The withdrawal was made after a final agreement as to which future product line up should be developed cannot be made between the two parties.

A spokesperson from GM North America informed the press that the joint venture between Toyota and their company has no future units planned for production.

The Prius though is already set for production at the California NUMMI plant since the plans of doing it at Mississippi did not materialize. The production at the NUMMI factory will also allow Prius to meet the increasing demand for hybrid vehicles.

The re-branding of the Toyota Prius is a great offer that might be too good to decline. Some worry though that with all the paper works, approval, and production, the re-branding of the Prius as a GM product may intersect with the timeline of the Volt which is due for release by late 2010. Toyota on the other hand is sure to be very happy with this development…

According to some reports, there will still be some impediments to overcome before GM can see its new beginning. Most of these processes will not have GM calling the shots— the bankruptcy judge still needs to rule on urgent matters by July 1. The court will hear a call for sale based on Section 363 which will involve putting on the market of the GM assets.

The General Motors is eyeing to form a new company by mid July and try to cut its time in the bankruptcy court. Among the major issues needed to be addressed is the reorganization.

The car manufacturer aims to chop of from its rank hundreds of dealerships across the United States before the end of 2010. The dealers who will remain in business can definitely smile but be ready for tougher demands for their businesses.

In the near future, GM representatives are set to meet with the dealerships to discuss their sales goals and the new setup that the dealerships must adapt to.

According to insiders, Gm will be focusing on their brands and there is a looming anxiety among dealerships that non-GM services and goods will be eventually discontinued.

Some dealerships may not agree to sign the new contract with GM and will have to raise some issues, there is a hint though that they will be terminated by the bankruptcy court if they will not sign.

The move is supported by as much as 74% of the union locals and is set to help make the American brands more competitive with the foreign brands of vehicles rolling into the US shores.

The deal with the UAW focuses on the essential elements like decreasing the production cost per unit and explore possibilities on retirement plans. These points will help GM handle its large population of retired workforce and its current wages and benefits for the employees. At present, the changes will affect about 54,000 employees across 46 plants and offices in the United States.

The element often overlooked on a competitive gap analysis is the long history of the company in terms of employment. Foreign car makers like Nissan, Honda, and Toyota may be building thousands of cars in the US on a yearly basis but does not have the big overhead of retired employees to manage like that of Chrysler, Ford, or GM.

The efforts of the negotiating panels from both the UAW and GM will give way to the closing in of the competitive gap and help the auto industry. Everything is also made possible with the cooperation of the employees and retirees of GM.

GM executives reveal that it might structure one of its plants that is scheduled to go on idle for the production of the vehicle. The plan will create 1200 jobs, which includes salaried and hourly labor. The car manufacturer has not selected a specific plant yet, but the investment is said to be between $600 million and $700 million.

In the US and around the globe the segment of small cars is the fastest growing market. The GM designers believe that the new generation of small cars will be ahead of the pack in terms of customer appreciation.

The specs of the new car have not been revealed. It will not be like Chevrolet Aveo which is built in South Korea or the Spark which is due for release in 2011. The Volt and the Cruze belong to the segment of larger cars. The company has also shown small, concept cars like the Groove and the Trax.

Cars in the B segment are considered entry-level, small cars. The Toyota has the Yaris in the B class while Honda has Fit, and Ford markets Fiesta. Aveo represents GM in this cluster.

According to company executives the chosen factory will be producing around 160,000 cars. Production of the small cars is in-line with the government proposal of raising the standards of fuel efficiency to 35.5 miles per gallon for 2016 car models. Right now fuel mileage standard is set at 25.30 mpg. This was prompted by skyrocketing fuel prices, which last month marked by $0.42 of increase in the price of gasoline.

The car industry believes that the demand in class b cars will continue to grow. GM has also made the plan to make production of the small car profitable for the company amid its financial problems.

General Motors is against the wall as it faces the June 1 deadline of the federal government to restructure their business and come up with compromise deals with its debtors so they can get more loans.

Insiders have warned that the car manufacturer might not be able to beat the deadline. Experts foresee GM to seek bankruptcy protection when the bell rings on June 1.

Earlier reports cited Fiat as the favored bidder with greater than 50% potential of winning the Opel takeover as based on the expertise that the company has. The latest information suggests that some German officials have expressed preference for the offer from Magna International.

GM officials are also skeptical of the plans of Fiat top executives to combine the Opel business with its stakes on Chrysler LLC and the automaker’s operation in Europe and Latin America.

According to reliable sources, GM is bargaining for at least a 40% share of Fiat’s planned enlarge group. The latter is planning to give GM only a 10% stake.

Officials from General Motors have not commented on the matter publicly. The German government released reports that Opel will rely on bridge loans to survive while the bids are being considered. The evaluation process is expected to take several weeks.