UAW chief sees new Mitsubishi talks soon

DETROIT (Reuters) - Contract talks between the United Auto Workers and Mitsubishi Motors Corp's (7211.T) Mitsubishi Motors North America should resume in the near future, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said on Tuesday.

"We've got an extension under way, and we continue to work toward an agreement there and hope we can get it worked out, Gettelfinger said at the Reuters Auto Summit in Detroit. "It shouldn't be that far off."

Gettelfinger declined to comment on the issues at stake in the bargaining.

Mitsubishi's plant in Normal, Illinois, is one of two plants run by Japanese automakers with a UAW-represented work force. The other is a joint venture in Fremont, California, between Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) and General Motors Corp

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Mitsubishi Motors, with less than 1 percent U.S. market share, reported a 29 percent sales decline in August. Year-to-date its sales are down 22 percent, led by a sharp drop in light trucks.

(Reporting by Nick Zieminski, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)