With the bids already in on Wednesday for GM Europe's Opel/Vauxhall division, Fiat has dramatically submitted an improved offer today and it is now being widely reported that the other two interested parties, Magna and RHJ, are also preparing to up their own offers.

The news that the positions are shifting comes from the German Economy Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg. He told journalists today: "We're sensing a willingness to negotiate further from all sides. Interestingly, Fiat has improved its offer once again and we've received a more thorough blueprint from them in the last few hours."

With newswires reporting this afternoon that the three bidders were in the process of making new offers for Opel/Vauxhall, Bloomberg quoted Roland Koch, the Prime Minister of the Hesse region where the German brand is based as saying in reference to Fiat: "I can confirm that something is on the way."

Yesterday Magna International, which is reportedly the favoured bidder, muddied the water after comments attributed to Co-CEO Siegfried Wolf stated that deep job cuts may be inevitable. Up to now Opel's powerful IG Metall union, as well as the German government coalition's political parties which are wrestling with the sensitive timing of an election later this year, have shown preference for Magna's offer as they believe Fiat's proposals will cause model overlap and plant rationalisation. Bloomberg also quoted Koch as saying that they were in "concrete talks" with Magna particularly as the Canadian components' manufacturer offered the better prospects for developing new markets and advanced technology. However he said the door was still wide open to Fiat and the third bidder, Brussels-based private equity house RHJ International: "At the same time, we’re still reading our incoming mail," Koch added.

"Fiat has improved its offer because it needs Opel’s technology," Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer, director of the Centre for Automotive Research at the University of Duisburg-Essen, was quoted by Bloomberg as saying during an interview today. "Fiat’s amended offer will unfortunately delay the process to find a solution for Opel when time is getting short because GM’s insolvency is looming on the horizon." Meanwhile Automotive News Europe, quoting sources 'familiar with the negotiations, said that Fiat has submitted two bids for Opel, one including, and one excluding, GM's Latin American operations.