Detroit  - General Motors (GM) has to date not made any decisions to close Opel auto works in Germany, the governor of the German province North Rhine Westphalia said Wednesday in Detroit.

Juergen Ruettgers, the top official in the province, talked to reporters after meeting in Detroit with Rick Wagoner, head of the beleaguered General Motors which owns the Opel line.

"We are so relieved," Ruettgers said. "There is no decision to close auto works in Germany, also not in Bochum."

New York  - Deere and Co, the world's largest maker of farm equipment, Wednesday posted a 45-per-cent drop in profits, to 204 million dollars, citing the recession and tight credit situation that constrains farmers from buying new machines.

Revenues sank slightly by 1 per cent, to 5.1 billion dollars, and could be further hurt by a drought in Latin America, the company said.

The company also lowered its projections for 2009 from 1.9 billion dollars to 1.5 billion dollars.

Germany - Workers at a General Motors (GM) plant in Germany which is at risk of closure were shaken Wednesday by an announcement from the US company that it plans to slash 26,000 jobs outside the United States.

"We heard about it on the radio during the night shift," said one worker at the plant gate as he was heading home. The plant, in the industrial city of Bochum, is a branch factory of Ruesselsheim-based Opel, the GM Europe brand.

Beijing - A Chinese automaker denied holding talks over buying General Motors' Hummer-brand sports utility vehicle unit, a spokesmen for the firm said on Wednesday.

"We don't have the desire (to buy Hummer) and we haven't had any contact with GM," the Sichuan Auto Industry Group spokesman said.

Bloomberg News on Tuesday quoted unidentified sources as saying Sichuan Auto, one of China's smaller auto makers, could pay up to 500 million dollars for Hummer.

To attract more Indians, Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) is all set to roll out a diesel variant of its premium compact car, the i-20, by the end of the existing year (2009).

The second largest car maker, which has already launched i-20 diesel variant in the European market, is now looking at launching the car in the Indian market.

Stuttgart  - The world is a dangerous place and to minimise the risk for politicians and captains of industry, Mercedes-Benz is offering an armour-plated version of the sleek new E-Class saloon.

Outwardly identical to the standard model, the beefed-up, E-Guard limousine features metal plates and aramide plastics in the bodywork which is tough enough to withstand the blast of a hand grenade.

The protective package includes thick, polycarbonate windows which can block shots from a 0.44 Magnum hand gun along with air suspension to cope with the added weight. An intercom system enables passengers to contact the outside world in case of attack.