GM CEO out

DETROIT, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Fritz Henderson, who took over at General Motors eight months ago, resigned as chief executive officer of the U.S. carmarker.

Members of the GM board of directors sought -- and received -- Henderson's resignation Tuesday. He had worked for the company since 1984 and became CEO March 31. GM Chairman Edward Whitacre was installed as interim CEO while an international search is carried out for a new GM leader.

The board reportedly thought Henderson was too much of a GM insider to make the overall changes needed to pull the carmaker out of its problems.

The U.S. Treasury said the Obama administration's auto task force wasn't involved in the removal of Henderson, as it had been when Rick Wagoner was forced out as CEO, which led to Henderson taking over the top spot.

The U.S. government owns about 60 percent of GM as a result of more than $50 billion in loans to keep the carmaker afloat. As part of its restructuring GM contracted to four brands -- Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC -- and went through a six-week bankruptcy. Last month, GM reported a third-quarter loss of $1.15 billion but, because it had generated $3.3 billion in the quarter, said it would soon begin to repay the federal loans.