The White House said it did not expect any announcement yesterday or today on a possible rescue plan to help the troubled US auto industry, local media reported yesterday.

The White House said earlier that it was considering using the US$700 billion Wall Street rescue fund to prevent automakers from failing.

A US$14-billion loan package aimed at bailing out the American auto industry from bankruptcy collapsed on Thursday night, as it was rejected by the US Senate despite the Wednesday approval by the House of Representatives.

The rescue plan was designed specifically for the so-called Detroit Three, namely General Motors (GM) Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC.

GM and Chrysler have warned that they could be just weeks away from collapse if there is no external assistance. Ford, which said it currently has sufficient money on hand, also hopes to get a line of credit in case its finances worsen.

The three companies employ nearly 250,000 people directly, and 100,000 more jobs at parts suppliers could hang on their survival.