GM deal clears way for end to US car strike

General Motors is said to have struck a tentative pay deal with the United Auto Workers (UAW) union, which would clear the way for resolution of a bruising six-week strike in the US.

The deal follows agreements at Ford and Chrylser-maker Stellantis, the other two carmakers affected by the walkouts.

Nearly 50,000 workers and dozens of sites were eventually involved in the action, the first in union history to target all three firms at once.

President Joe Biden welcomed the deal.

"I think it's great," he said.

Mr Biden had visited a picket line at the start of the strike to express support for the workers' cause, becoming what is believed to be the first sitting president to do so.

GM and the UAW did not immediately comment on the reports of the deal, the terms of which were not immediately available.

Ford and Stellantis had agreed to pay raises of roughly 25% over the four-year-term of the new contract, as well as other changes that were important to workers, including making it easier for so-called "temporary" staff to transition to full-time and receive full benefits.

Those agreements will now be put to workers for approval.

Credit rating agency Moody's has estimated that such a deal would add more than $1bn in costs for each of the car companies.