General Motors Corp. announced on Friday a plan to manufacture small cars in the United States, in a bid to revive its falling sales and production in home market.

An idled GM assembly and stamping facility will be utilized and re-tooled, with a desired production of 160,000 cars annually. GM hopes the move will increase its U.S. production levels by more than 70 percent by 2013.

GM did not reveal details on the design or possible manufacturing site of the new product. But it stressed that the vehicle will add to GM's U.S.-built fuel-efficient cars portfolio, which includes the all-electric plug-in Volt under Cheverolet.

"Small cars represent one of the fastest growing segments in both the U.S. and around the world," said Fritz Henderson, GM President and CEO. "We believe this car will be a winner with our current and future customers in the U.S."

The announcement came amid the count down of a probable GM bankruptcy. GM's dependence on powerful, fuel-guzzling sport-utility vehicles and trucks met with a double hit last year when record-high oil prices and then an unprecedented recession restrained demand.

Largest U.S. industrious corporation and once the largest automaker in the world, GM has been struggling to stay afloat in the past seven months despite an injection of 19.4 billion U.S. dollars from U.S. Treasury. The company is expected to file for bankruptcy protection on Monday.

(Xinhua News Agency May 30, 2009)