Platinum prices fell in New York on concern that auto-industry demand for the metal will take longer to recover. Palladium futures also declined. Canadian autoworkers voted to accept a cost-cutting agreement as General Motors Corp., the biggest U.S. carmaker, prepared for a “probable” bankruptcy filing by a June 1 government deadline. Many bondholders have said they will reject a debt-restructuring plan tomorrow, pushing the automaker into court. Most platinum and palladium is used in car parts. “GM’s virtually certain bankruptcy loomed over the markets,” Jon Nadler, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said today by e-mail. Platinum futures for July delivery tumbled $28.20, or 2.4 percent, to $1,131.80 an ounce at 9:34 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Palladium futures for June delivery slid $1.80, or 0.8 percent, to $232.50 an ounce in New York. Platinum dropped 47 percent in the past year before today while palladium fell 49 percent as the first simultaneous recessions in the U.S., Europe and Japan since World War II curbed demand for cars and trucks. Carmakers cut their platinum use for the first time in nine years in 2008 and may consume less in 2009 as a global recession curbs sales, Johnson Matthey Plc, a metals trader and refiner, said on May 18. The metal is used in emissions-control parts. GM Chief Executive Officer Fritz Henderson has said that a bankruptcy filing is “probable.” Chrysler LLC, the third- biggest U.S. carmaker, sought bankruptcy court protection on April 30. Ford Motor Co. is the second-largest U.S. car company.

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