General Motors

General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM), also known as GM, is a United States-based automobile maker with worldwide operations and brands including Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Holden, Hummer, Opel, Pontiac, Saturn, Saab and Vauxhall.

Chevrolet and GMC divisions produce trucks, as well as passenger vehicles. Other brands include AC Delco and Allison Transmission. GM also has a 8% stake in Isuzu and a 3% stake in Suzuki in Japan and a joint venture with AvtoVAZ in Russia. In December 2003, it acquired Delta in South Africa, in which it had taken a 45 % stake in 1997, and which is now a fully-owned subsidiary, General Motors South Africa. General Motors is also a majority shareholder (50.9%) in GM Daewoo.

GM's headquarters are in the Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan. The company is the world's largest vehicle manufacturer and employs over 340,000 people. In 2001, GM sold 8.5 million vehicles through all its branches; in 2002, GM sold 15 % of all cars and trucks in the world. They also owned Electronic Data Systems from 1984 to 1996 and, prior to selling it to News Corporation, DirecTV. GM owned Frigidaire from 1918 to 1979.