GM has acted quickly to dismiss
reports filtering from the US indicating that the world’s largest
carmaker is set to acquire a stake in Proton.
First aired by the Bloomberg US television network, the reports
stated that GM “had an interest” in the Malaysian carmaker,
which also has Lotus Cars under its wing.
However, a GM spokesperson in the Far East dismissed the rumours, saying:
“These reports are absolutely untrue. GM does not intend to take
a stake in Proton.”
| The rumour seems to have been born out of an engineering collaboration
announcement between GM and Proton. “This [venture] with Proton
is in its infancy, and nothing has been determined,” added the
GM spokesperson. |
Only two months ago Proton announced it has signed a letter of intent
to collaborate with MG Rover.
Lotus has also come under the spotlight, with reports from Malaysia suggesting
that Proton was looking to sell the British-based specialist carmaking
firm. Both Lotus and Proton have moved swiftly to quash the rumours.
“I don’t how these reports started. Rumours have been buzzing
around about Proton wanting to sell Lotus, but we flatly deny this,”
said Lotus spokesperson Alastair Florance. He added: “Proton even
released a statement on the Kuala Lumpur stock exchange stating these
reports are false and I think that’s the end of the matter.”
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