GM CEO sees good sign in Delphi talks

After Delphi's request for hearing postponement approved Rick Wagoner is optimistic, says deal still not imminent.
ROYAL OAK, Mich.(Reuters) -- General Motors Corp. Chief Executive Rick Wagoner on Friday said the postponement of a hearing on Delphi Corp.'s request to void its labor contracts is "a good sign" and indicative of progress in talks between GM, Delphi and its unions.
Speaking to reporters at a press conference about the company's new Camaro car, Wagoner said "progress is being made" in talks with bankrupt auto parts supplier Delphi and the unions, but a deal is "not imminent."
GM , Delphi and its unions are trying to negotiate a new labor contract to avoid a court ruling that could lead to a strike. Analysts have said a strike at Delphi could shut down GM's North American operations and force it to burn through billions of dollars a week.
Wagoner's comments come a day after the court granted Delphi's request to delay hearings until Sept. 18, giving the parties more time to negotiate a new contract.
"Delphi representatives have clearly said they want to get a solution during this period," Wagoner said. "The pieces that needed to come together are coming together."
GM has said it may have to spend $5.5 billion to $12 billion to help settle the Delphi labor issues. The automaker spun off Delphi in 1999, when it agreed to cover retiree and health-care costs for former GM workers if Delphi could not.
Separately, Wagoner said GM has not changed its third-quarter production outlook, even as smaller rival Ford Motor Co . on Friday said it was cutting production for the rest of the year.
Third-quarter production in the region is "locked in", Wagoner said. GM has said it will build 1.05 million cars and trucks in North America in the third quarter.
Ford said it would cut fourth-quarter production by 21 percent, to its lowest level in more than two decades as high gasoline prices were hurting sales of pickup trucks.
Wagoner declined to comment on fourth-quarter production plans in North America, saying GM will discuss them when it announces August sales on Sept. 1.
Wagoner said Ford's production cuts are indicative of an industry getting serious about creating "stability in the marketplace" and becoming "sensitive to inventory levels."
"We're doing some of that ourselves," Wagoner said. Last week, the CEO said the automaker would slow the production pace of its new lineup of full-size SUVs through the rest of the year to avoid building up too much inventory.