General Motors Co. CEO Dan Akerson told a German newspaper that Opel can be successful with its new cost structure, and repeated that the European brand was not for sale. Hit the jump to read the rest of the story.
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“We would never give Opel away. Opel contributes to our global size and is not for sale, end of discussion,” Akerson said in an interview published in the Thursday edition of Financial Times Deutschland.

Akerson underlined his commitment to the European brand in a bid to quash rumors circulating in Germany that GM may sell the Opel brand, which last year accounted for 13 percent of GM’s total sales.

“Unfortunately there are some people in Germany who apparently have an interest in warming up these rumors,” Akerson told the paper.

Speculation about Opel’s future began in early June with reports by German media that the European unit could be sold with possible buyers including Chinese automakers or Volkswagen AG .

With its new cost structure, Opel can do much more than survive, and even become successful, Akerson told FT Deutschland, adding that General Motors was profitable in Europe in the second quarter.

Last week, the automaker posted a $102 million net profit in Europe for the second quarter, reversing a $160 million loss a year earlier. European revenue rose to $7.5 billion from $6 billion.

In a statement, GM said its European unit incurred restructuring costs of approximately $100 million, which was around $200 million less than in last year’s second quarter.

Deliveries of the Opel/Vauxhall brand rose to 340,000 from 315,000 in last year, GM said.