http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090710/ap_on_bi_ge/us_gm_bankruptcy

DETROIT – The new General Motors will be faster and more responsive to customers than the old one, and it will make money and repay government loans faster than required, CEO Fritz Henderson said Friday as a leaner version of the automaker emerged from bankruptcy protection.

The bulk of General Motors Corp.'s assets were transferred to a company controlled by the U.S. government.

Once the world's largest and most powerful automaker, new GM is now cleansed of massive debt and burdensome contracts that would have sunk it without federal loans.

But the new GM also emerges amidst the worst sales slump in a quarter-century.

Henderson told a news conference that GM completed its 40-day stay under court supervision far faster than anyone thought it could. He said it would repay about $50 billion in government loans ahead of a 2015 deadline.

He said the company now will focus more on customers, including a partnership with eBay to test auctioning vehicles online.

The new GM will also build more cars and trucks that consumers want and launch them faster than in the past, the CEO said.

"We recognize that we've been given a rare second chance at GM, and we are very grateful for that. And we appreciate the fact that we now have the tools to get the job done," he said.

Henderson also said the company would reduce its overall U.S. salaried employment by 20 percent by the end of 2009. He said management ranks will be cut by 35 percent, or 450 executives, including the elimination of its North American president position. Henderson said he will take responsibility for North American operations.

Frankly, I will believe that GM will start making money AFTER it has happened.