Washington  - General Motors Corp is keeping open the option of bankruptcy in order to restructure the flagging US carmaker, GM's new chief executive Fritz Henderson said Tuesday.

Henderson, who took over the top job from Rick Wagoner Monday as part of a White House-forced shake-up, said he was confident the company could make the necessary changes to survive either way.

"If we're not successful doing it out of court, we will do it in court," Henderson told reporters in his first press conference from Detroit.

Stuttgart  - German sports carmaker Porsche reported Tuesday that its first-half profits rose more than threefold, mainly as a result of gains in Volkswagen shares.

The company said net profit for the first six months of the financial year ending in July climbed to 5.62 billion euros (7.41 billion dollars) from 1.3 billion euros a year ago.

At the same time sales declined by 27 per cent to 34,000 vehicles, causing turnover to plunge 12.08 per cent to 3.04 billion euros, the company said.

Washington  - Struggling US carmaker Chrysler LLC and Italian maker Fiat Motor SA said Monday they had reached a deal in principle on a new partnership, less than two hours after the US government said the merger was the only way for Chrysler to keep its emergency loans.

Chrysler chief executive Bob Nardelli, announcing the agreement, said the alliance would help the US carmaker preserve jobs and build more fuel-efficient cars.

"Chrysler has consistently said that the alliance with Fiat enhances its business model (and) expands its global competitiveness," Nardelli said in his statement.

Washington - Struggling US carmaker Chrysler

Washington  - The struggling US car industry will be given one last chance to restructure operations or lose the government's support, President Barack Obama announced Monday, declaring that General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC had so far failed to prove that they can survive.

In a dramatic government intervention in the industry, Obama called for a series of changes in the two companies' outdated business models and forced out long-time GM chief executive Rick Wagoner, who will be replaced by the company's president Fritz Henderson.

Washington - The struggling US car industry will be given one last chance to restructure operations or lose the government's support, President Barack Obama announced Monday, declaring that General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC had so far failed to prove that they can survive.

In a dramatic government intervention in the industry, Obama called for a series of changes to the car industry and forced out long-time GM chief executive Rick Wagoner, who will be replaced by the company's president Fritz Henderson.