Ford Invests in Smaller, Greener Cars; Payroll Cuts Better Than Expected; Saab Open to Fiat Takeover; Canada’s March Building Permits Surge; eBay CEO: Skype Worth More Than $2 Billion; Hertz Wants to Lease 20% of Fleet From Car Companies; Crude Tops $56; Eddie Bauer in Play

Barring some dramatic – and unforeseen – news this week, expect investors to tread water until Thursday, when the government is expected to release the results of the bank stress tests it conducted on the 19 largest U.S. banks.

Only one of the 19 financial institutions that received a bank stress test would require additional capital, the controversial government initiative has reportedly concluded.

Fiat SpA (OTC: FIATY) Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne said his company would walk away from merger talks with Chrysler LLC unless American and Canadian unions agree to take substantial pay cuts, The Toronto Globe and Mail reported.

In a move that would effectively nationalize the country’s largest automaker, the U.S. government is considering taking an equity stake in General Motors Corp. (GM) in exchange for part of the $13.4 billion it has already lent the company, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

General Motors Corp. (GM) and Chrysler LLC presented their highly anticipated restructuring plans yesterday (Wednesday), but said they would need as much as $22 billion in additional federal aid to keep their turnaround efforts from stalling.

Volkswagen AG (PINK: VLKAF), PSA Peugeot Citroen SA (OTC ADR: PEUGY), and Fiat SPA (OTC ADR: FIATY) beat earnings estimates in the last week. At the same time, however, Ford Motor Co. (F), one of the largest industrial companies in America, missed earnings estimates. By a lot.