General Motors reaches deal with Argentine port operator to import cars

A unit of General Motors Co has reached a deal with port operator Terminal Puerto Rosario to import cars to Argentina, moving the U.S. automaker a step closer to exporting from its nearby plant, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

General Motors Mercosur, which includes GM's Argentina and Brazil units, said the first automobiles, manufactured in South Korea, arrived this week.

The company has a production plant near the Rosario port complex and said its long-term goal would be to export cars produced there through the port.

Argentina's automobile production fell nearly 30 percent in February, according to the most recent data from the country's Automobile Manufacturers Association, due to lower demand in top export destination Brazil.

(Reporting by Maximiliano Rizzi; Writing by Luc Cohen; editing by Diane Craft)