Chrysler gets $400 million in loan panel backing

The financially desperate Chrysler Corporation won approval for another $400 million in backing from the Loan Guarantee Board. Steve Miller, a Chrysler vice-president, said the decision was "a milestone in economic history" and predicted the company will survive without having to tap the additional $300 million Congress had authorized. But he added that Chrysler is seeking a potential merger with another carmaker, possibly French or Japanese, to ensure that America's third-largest automaker survives in some form. Chrysler must no w win concessions from banks, its suppliers and employees.