GM's Hummer said to attract Chinese company

General Motors Corp., working to sell assets to help keep $13.4 billion in U.S. loans, has drawn interest in its Hummer brand from a Chinese company and a private-equity firm, people familiar with the talks said.

The pace of negotiations has intensified in the past few weeks, said the people, who wouldn’t name the suitors and asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. More meetings are scheduled this week, one person said.

"The Hummer review is progressing and an update is due by the end of the first quarter," said GM spokeswoman Joanne Krell, who wouldn’t comment on any bidders.

Unloading the sport-utility vehicle unit would move GM closer to the goal of showing its future viability to the U.S. Treasury by Feb. 17. If the biggest U.S. automaker can’t prove its ability to return to profit, it could be told to give up the loans or use the cash for a government-funded bankruptcy.

"Given the volume of the brand and the economic situation, I don’t really see a tremendous value," said Dennis Virag, president of Automotive Consulting Group in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He estimated Hummer might fetch $100 million or less.