Detroit, July 15 (Reuters): Rick Wagoner, chief executive officer of General Motors (GM), is slated to announce the auto maker’s second restructuring package in six weeks as the company looks to cut costs and win back investor confidence in the face of slumping sales.

The cost cutting will include widespread job cuts for white-collar workers, including engineers assigned to develop GM’s next generation of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and pick-up trucks, people familiar with the plans said.

Analysts also expect GM to unveil a shake-up of its product portfolio to reflect steps intended to make the line-up more competitive on fuel efficiency.

In addition, GM is expected to detail steps to conserve cash, including possibly eliminating dividend payments, as it prepares to raise capital to carry it into 2010 when it will begin to capture large savings from a contract reached last year with the United Auto Workers union, analysts have said.

Shares of GM bounced higher by as much as 5 per cent in after-hours trade after the news. The stock had lost about 63 per cent since the start of the year. GM executives, including Wagoner, scheduled a series of briefings for employees, analysts and reporters on Tuesday.

The company said those briefings would include executives responsible for GM’s financial performance and its product line-up and would detail what GM was doing to “align” its operations to current market conditions.

The largest US auto maker has been under intensifying pressure to cut costs because of a rapid shift away from trucks and SUVs and a decline in overall sales.