Suppliers cut off Saab due to unpaid bills

Fears rose for Saab owner Spyker Cars today following reports that suppliers had stopped deliveries to Saab due to unpaid bills.

The shares crashed 18% this morning after it emerged the situation was so serious that Saab temporarily halted production yesterday. A spokesman confirmed that production has stopped again today.

Trading in Spyker shares in Amsterdam was suspended in the first few minutes of trading this morning.

Spyker's chief executive, Victor Muller, told Reuters that production was halted for two hours on Tuesday because a transport company wanted better payment, but he said that production resumed on today.

Swedish newspaper Dagens Industri had earlier reported that production had been halted after some suppliers stopped deliveries due to unpaid bills.

Spyker sold its famous supercars earlier this year to British coachbuilder CPP to focus on the Saab business it bought from General Motors last year.