Ajax update

WHILE union representatives were holding out hope earlier this week that a deal with an Indian consortium could save Ajax Engineered Fasteners, GM Holden and Ford were in negotiations with Australian and overseas parts suppliers to sure-up supply for the rest of this year and beyond.

Both car manufacturers were confident that new contracts would soon be in place and stand-downs at their assembly plants averted.

A Holden spokesman told GoAuto that the company planned to source "80 to 90 per cent" of parts from Australian companies.

"Where they are sourced overseas that will be due to the fact that identical or similar parts are already being used in GM programs elsewhere around the world, so that means we are sourcing a small number of parts from the US, Europe and Brazil," he said.