Sweden

Swedish car maker Koenigsegg Group AB has reached an agreement to acquire General Motors Corp.'s Saab Automobile AB unit for an undisclosed sum, the companies said Tuesday. Saab was granted creditor protection in Sweden Feb. 20 and GM, also in bankruptcy protection, said it wanted to offload the unit by the year's end. The sale, expected to close by the end of the third quarter of this year, includes an expected $600 million funding commitment from the European Investment Bank guaranteed by the Swedish government, the companies said in a statement.

General Motors Corp.'s Saab Automobile AG Friday won more time to pursue a likely sale and avoid bankruptcy after a local Swedish court granted an extension to the struggling Swedish automaker's creditor protection period. Vanersborg District Court in southwestern Sweden extended the reorganization period for three months until Aug. 20. Loss-making Saab was granted protection from creditors in February, similar to Chapter 11 protection in the U.S., with the aim of reorganizing itself in a bid to become profitable.

Saab Automobile, which filed for bankruptcy protection last month, will cut 750 jobs at its main factory in southern Sweden in response to falling demand, Bloomberg reported. About 650 of the affected workers are tied to production, while the remaining 100 jobs are administrative positions, Saab spokeswoman Gunilla Gustavs said by telephone from Gothenburg today. Saab has about 4,100 workers, most of them in Trollhaettan, where Saab makes the 9-3 and 9-5 models.

Swedish auto parts maker Plastal Holding AB, which employs 6,000 people in Europe and is 90 percent owned by investment fund Nordic Capital, said yesterday it had filed for bankruptcy, the Globe and Mail reported. "Efforts to avoid insolvency have failed," Plastal said in a joint statement with Nordic Capital. Plastal counts Ford, Volvo, Daimler, Audi, Volkswagen and BMW among its clients. "The auto sector is in free fall at the moment. Bankruptcy is the last resort," Nordic Capital said.

Sakthi Sugars Ltd said on Thursday two of its European units have filed for bankruptcy as required under local laws following an economic slowdown in United States and Europe, which resulted in a drastic reduction in orders, Reuters reported. Sakthi Germany GmbH, a 6th step down subsidiary which operates two plants in the country, and Sakthi Sweden A.B., a 3rd step down unit and a Swedish holding company, have filed for bankruptcy under the laws of the respective countries, it said in a statement to the stock exchange.

Telecom operator TeliaSonera has given notice to 1,200 employees in Sweden as the recession continues to claim its victims, PC World reported. TeliaSonera is under pressure from trends including lower broadband tariffs and a move to mobile and IP (Internet Protocol) based services from fixed telephony, which is its main revenue source. The personnel cuts are part of a plan announced by TeliaSonera last February. The goal is to reduce its staff by 2,900 employees and save approximately 5 billion Swedish kronor (US$609 million).

Officials from four Nordic central banks and finance ministries held a private meeting in Stockholm on Wednesday to discuss their contributions to a $6 billion rescue package for Iceland, the Financial Times reported. The gathering was a strong sign that Denmark, Sweden and Finland are drawing closer to announcing a multibillion euro package of loans after Norway agreed a €500m ($648m, £405m) advance last week. The four Nordic nations have said they are willing to support Iceland but only after it agreed to design and implement an economic stabilisation plan in association with the IMF.