GM posts $3 bln loss, shares jump as worse avoided

By Kevin Krolicki and David Bailey

DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp posted a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss on Wednesday as sales gains in Asia and Latin America overshadowed a slump in the U.S. market, sending its shares up 13 percent.

The No. 1 U.S. automaker fell to a net loss of $3.25 billion, or $5.74 per share, from a year-earlier profit, reflecting the impact of a costly supplier strike and waning demand in North America for GM's most profitable vehicles.

But excluding $2.2 billion in charges for struggling former subsidiaries, the results were better than forecast and investors applauded GM's ability to avoid a worse result at a time of mounting pressure in its home market.

GM took a $1.45-billion charge for its remaining investment in finance company GMAC in the first quarter and a $731-million charge for its exposure to the bankruptcy of auto parts supplier and former subsidiary Delphi Corp.

Revenue declined 2 percent to $42.7 billion.

Excluding charges, GM reported a first-quarter loss of $350 million, or 62 cents per share, much narrower than the average Wall Street forecast for a per-share loss of $1.67 as tracked by Reuters Estimates.

GM, which has lost a combined $51 billion over the past three years, said the quarterly results pointed to some progress in its turnaround effort.

But executives also cautioned that the Detroit-based automaker would face a slower recovery in the United States in the second half of this year and a faster shift out of more profitable trucks and SUVs in response to higher gas prices.