Losses in China lead to $5 billion charge for General Motors as it cuts the value of its assets

The poor performance of General Motors’ Chinese joint ventures is forcing the company to write down assets and take a restructuring charge totaling more than $5 billion in the fourth quarter of this year. The Detroit automaker said Wednesday in a regulatory filing that it will cut the value of its equity stake in the ventures by $2.6 billion to $2.9 billion when results are reported early next year. In addition, GM will take $2.7 billion worth of restructuring charges, most during the fourth quarter. GM says the noncash charges will reduce the company’s net income, but they will not affect adjusted pretax earnings.