GM Says Saab Sales is Unlikely

General Motors Co. CEO Ed Whitacre says he is "not confident" that a deal to save Saab Automobile can be negotiated.

In a Wednesday press briefing, Whitacre said no bidder has offered solid financing to buy the Swedish automaker. Dutch sports car maker Spyker Cars NV has been trying to complete a deal, and GM extended its deadline from 31 December to 7 January.

But Whitacre says GM has not yet seen a viable offer. "It's real easy," he tells reporters: "Just show up with the money and you can have it. But nobody's shown up with the money so we're in wind-down mode here."

An expected sale of the unit to Swedish sports car maker Koenigsegg AB abruptly collapsed in November, and GM described Spyker's initial follow-up bid as insufficient.

GM also is trying to sell its Hummer brand to China's Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. Whitacre insists that deal, which was announced seven months ago, is "proceeding as it should proceed."

Separately, Whitacre startled investors by predicting GM will earn a profit this year. He also says the company is not likely to launch an initial public offering before late 2010. For the immediate term, Whitacre says GM's goal is simple: "We have to sell more stuff," he declares.