GM’s South Korea sales slump after shuttering factory

SEOUL (Reuters) – General Motors’ (GM.N) sales in South Korea slumped 19 percent in February, hurt by its decision to shut down one of its factories in the country.

The U.S. automaker has also said it will decide the fate of its three remaining plants in South Korea in the coming weeks, as it attempts a politically contentious restructuring of its loss-making unit.

GM Korea likely made an operating loss of 800 billion won ($740 million) last year, the fourth consecutive year of losses after being hit by GM’s withdrawal of the Chevy brand from Europe in 2013, South Korea’s financial regulator said this week.