‘Orderly’ bankruptcy considered for US carmakers — Credit is still impossible to get so even if you want to buy a car, too bad. So whose fault is that?

The White House said Thursday it is considering the option of an “orderly” bankruptcy as it weighs aid for U.S. automakers and Chrysler LLC prepared to shut down all of its 30 factories for a month.

The move by the Bush administration injected a new note of uncertainty into the politically charged discussions of a bailout for the U.S. automakers that is reaching a conclusion after more than a month of wrangling.

Both Chrysler and General Motors Corp denied earlier on Thursday that merger talks between the two had restarted.

Also, the outlook for a near-term recovery in global auto demand dimmed as Europe saw a record fall in truck sales and an industry group warned that Japanese car sales likely to be the worst in at least three decades next year.