KEY POINTS:
President George W. Bush said yesterday he was "not quite ready" to announce his decision on a rescue plan for US carmakers.
The President, travelling on Air Force One from Iraq to Afghanistan, said that "it won't be a long process" because of the industry's "fragility".
Asked if he leaned to using funding approved to rescue Wall St firms, he said, "I signalled that's a possibility."
After the Senate failed to pass an aid package for carmakers, the White House said it would consider tapping the US$700 billion ($1.27 trillion) Troubled Asset Relief Programme.
General Motors and Chrysler have said they need aid this month to avoid running out of cash for operations.
Ford has asked for a credit line it said it might not have to use.
Senator Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican, said the United Auto Workers union would not agree to wage and benefit cuts as part of a bid for Government aid because it was sure the Bush Administration would bail out the carmakers.
Corker said he called union president Ron Gettelfinger after talks broke down and urged him to make another attempt at getting an agreement, which could have cleared the way for broad support for a US$14 billion bailout of the carmakers. Gettelfinger told Corker "he knew the White House would bail them out," Corker said on Fox News' Sunday. Gettelfinger responded later, saying he never told Corker he was counting on the White House. "Why would we run the risk of knocking this down in the Senate if the urgency is what it is?" he told CNN's Late Edition.
The Bush Administration, including Treasury officials and White House chief-of-staff Joshua Bolten, were continuing talks with motor industry executives and union leaders. They were gathering and assessing financial information from the carmakers, and projecting how long cash will last.
- BLOOMBERG
