US bailout to help German cos too

BERLIN: BMW and Daimler, the largest luxury carmakers, stand to benefit more from a government rescue of the US automobile industry than if their competitors go bankrupt.

A proposal to grant General Motors and Chrysler $15 billion in emergency funding should avert a meltdown that would depress sales and drag down the financially strapped parts makers that supply the European companies��� plants both in North America and elsewhere.

���You can���t underestimate what would happen when a large player collapses,��� BMW chief executive officer Norbert Reithofer said on Tuesday in an e-mailed response to questions. ���That would impact the supplier structure and therefore the entire industry.���