Cerberus, Daimler still at odds over Chrysler

Even as the clock ticks off the minutes until Chrysler’s April 30 “do-or-die” deadline, one of the issues facing the automaker appears no closer to a resolution: the 19.1 percent of the company still owned by Daimler AG.

In remarks prepared for Daimler’s stockholder meeting yesterday, CEO Dieter Zetsche again blamed Cerberus Capital Management, the investment firm that bought the majority of Chrysler from Daimler in August 2007, for the impasse saying the demands from Chrysler’s new owners are “making it difficult to reach an agreement.”

Daimler AG already has written off the value of its holdings but also holds the note on a $1.5 billion loan it made to Chrysler as part of the deal with Cerberus. Cerberus now has to persuade Daimler to renegotiate the debt and transfer Daimler’s stake under terms the German automaker has called “unacceptable.”