Chrysler shuts down all production

Close of business Friday will be the start of a monthlong closure of 30 U.S. plants. Company cites 'continued lack of consumer credit.'

By Peter Valdes-Dapena, CNNMoney.com senior writer

Chrysler Dodge Ram trucks sit in a lot outside of a automotive plant in Warren, Michigan. Chrysler LLC said it could run out of cash within weeks without help from the government. Photograph by : Spencer Platt, Getty Images

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Chrysler LLC announced late Wednesday that it is stopping all vehicle production in the United States for at least a month. All 30 of the carmaker's plants will close after the last shift on Friday, and employees will not be asked to return to work before Jan. 19. Chrysler blamed the "continued lack of consumer credit for the American car buyer" for the slow-down in sales that forced the move.

The company ordinarily shuts down operations between Dec. 24 and Jan. 5. This closure would add roughly two weeks to that shutdown. Chrysler is the third of the Big Three automakers to suspend operations for January. Last week, General Motors announced it was idling 30% of its North American manufacturing capacity during the first quarter of 2009 in response to deteriorating market conditions. That move will take 250,000 vehicles out of production. On Wednesday, a Ford spokeswoman confirmed for CNN that the automaker is adding a week to its normal two-week seasonal shutdown at a number of its plants.