Berlin - The German government rejected Tuesday a plea from General Motors (GM), the world's biggest carmaker, for targeted aid for German car factories.

At the same time, an existing government plan to subsidize car sales came unravelled, suggesting that the final form of Berlin's aid to the industry was still in play.

With US-based GM teetering, the multinational's German arm, Opel, had earlier written to Chancellor Angela Merkel requesting she push harder for a 40-billion-euro 

New York - As Washington openly debated help for the beleaguered automobile industry, shares of General Motors plunged as much as 31 per cent Monday as a Deutsche Bank AG analyst speculated the shares may be worthless in a year.

"Even if GM succeeds in averting a bankruptcy, we believe that the company's future path is likely to be bankruptcy-like," Deutsche Bank's Rod Lache was quoted by Bloomberg financial news service as saying.

Bucharest - Renault SA's Romanian plant will halt production for three weeks as the country's car market slows, a news agency reported Monday.

Employees at Dacia, which makes budget-priced compact cars mostly for export, will get 85 per cent of pay during the November 20-December 7 break, the Mediafax agency said.

From January through October, Dacia's production ran at 17 per cent above last year's level. But production recently was halted for four days because of slowing demand.

Riga - With sales of new cars in Latvia shrinking by more than a third in the first ten months of 2008 according to figures released Monday, it was left to carmakers at opposite ends of the price spectrum to report the strongest results.

Total sales of new cars in the Baltic country for January to October dropped to 10,434 from 17,239 in the same period last year, according to the Latvian Authorized Car Dealers Association.

Sydney  - Australia's three foreign-owned carmakers will receive subsidies worth 6.2 billion Australian dollars (4.3 billion US dollars) over the next 13 years, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said Monday.

Around 20 per cent of the cash going to Toyota Motor Corp, GM Holden Ltd and the Ford Motor Co will be reserved for hybrids and low-emission vehicles.

Australia's automotive trio roll out petrol-thirsty six-cylinder cars that have lost their appeal in the local market because of higher petrol prices and environmental concerns.

Pune, Nov. 9 : Small-scale industry workers in Pune on Saturday lamented dull prospects due the cost cutting measures of Tata Motors.

Tata Motors Ltd, India''s largest vehicle maker, is closing two of its commercial vehicle plants for six days later this month to avoid inventory build-up, a spokesman for the company said on Friday.

Its commercial vehicle plant in Pune, in the western state of Maharashtra, will be shut from Nov. 21-26, while its commercial vehicle plant in Lucknow will be shut from Nov. 10-15, he said.