Shreveport plant awaits fate: A deal to sell Hummer to a Chinese machinery company has hit two potentially insurmountable obstacles, reports The New York Times. The hang-ups involve hostility from Chinese regulators and bank financing problems. Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. is trying to set up a subsidiary outside of China to buy Hummer. But western banks have had little enthusiasm for the deal. Under the original agreement, Tengzhong would have continued building Hummers at a GM plant in Shreveport at least through the end of the year. Read the full story here.
Battle for mall operator: Brookfield Asset Management is preparing to buy a large stake in General Growth Properties, which operates the Mall of Louisiana, according to The Wall Street Journal. Brookfield, a Canadian firm, aims to top a bid Simon Property Group made last week for General Growth. Under the deal, General Growth would come out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a stand-alone company, with Brookfield serving as the biggest shareholder. General Growth rejected Simon’s bid last week. Read the story here. (Registration required.)
Stable prices: Home prices rose for the seventh straight month in December, a sign of price stability as the U.S. housing market continues its bumpy road to recovery. The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index released today rose 0.3% from November to December, to a seasonally adjusted reading of 145.87. The index was off 3.1% from December last year, nearly matching analysts’ estimates that it would fall by 3.2%. Only five of 20 cities in the index showed declines from November to December. The index is now up more than 3% from its bottom in May, but still 30% below its May 2006 peak. Los Angeles and Phoenix posted the largest price increases. The worst performer was Chicago with a 0.6% decline.
