Cerberus, the owner of Chrysler, is talking to banks about refinancing the $9bn of debt owed by the carmaker.

Reports suggest it is getting closer to removing the financial obstacles that are preventing a merger being agreed with General Motors.

Analysts believe GM was reluctant to take on Chrysler's current debt financing terms.

GMAC, GM's financing arm which is majority owned by Chrysler, is reportedly considering changing its legal status to become a bank in order to benefit from the US Treasury's Troubled Assets Relief Programme and reduce its borrowing costs.

Toyota to take the lead

This week GM revealed its global sales dropped in the third quarter to 2.11 million vehicles, compared to 2.38 million in the same period last year.

Analysts expect it to lose its title of world's largest vehicle manufacturer to Toyota, which has outsold GM over the first nine months of the year.