Excluding special items, GM reported an adjusted net loss of US$5.9 billion, or US$9.66 per share, compared to a 381 million dollars loss or 67 cents per share in the first quarter of 2008, the company said in a statement.

Most analysts had expected the largest US-based automaker to post a loss of US$11.05 per share, meaning a decline of more than US$6.7 billion.

GM said its first quarter revenue plunged 47 per cent to US$22.4 billion from US$42.4 billion in the year-ago quarter.

The revenue drop was primarily due to GM's 40 percent production decline of 903,000 units on a global basis year-over-year,' the statement said.

Debt-ridden GM has taken more than US$15 billion in government loans and faces a June 1 deadline to complete a major restructuring plan or force to follow its rival Chrysler into bankruptcy court.

GM chief executive Fritz Henderson remained confident on Thursday that the company could emerge from the flood of red ink. 'This is a defining moment in the history of General Motors,' he said, underscoring commitment to a rapid overhaul plan unveiled last month aimed at staving off bankruptcy by giving effective control of the automaker to the US government and its main union.

The new plan, which also calls for more job cuts and an end to the fabled Pontiac brand, aims to ease a crushing debt burden by converting much of the debt to stock - a move giving a combined 89 percent of GM shares to the US Treasury and United Auto Workers union.

Bondholders would get 10 per cent of the company's stock through an exchange of US$27 billion in outstanding bonds, leaving the existing common shareholders with just one percent of GM.

'Our first quarter results underscore the importance of executing GM's revised Viability Plan, which goes further and faster to lower our break-even point,' said Mr Henderson, who took over after President Barack Obama's administration forced Rick Wagoner to resign a month ago. 'The plan will lead to a stable and sustainable operating structure with a strong balance sheet,' he said. -- AFP