Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp., the carmaker that has lost almost $70 billion since 2004, may ultimately reduce purchases from Hewlett-Packard Co. to avoid giving too much of its technology business to a single supplier.

The August purchase of Electronic Data Systems Corp. gave Hewlett-Packard almost a third of GM's $15 billion in technology spending, turning the computer maker into its largest supplier. That consolidation makes GM ``somewhat uncomfortable,'' Chief Information Officer Ralph Szygenda said in an interview.

``The question is, do I have too much in one bucket?'' said Szygenda, who has overseen GM's technology budget for more than a decade. ``Down deep, economics tells me I need some more diversity.'' He stressed that the carmaker has no plans to seek new suppliers immediately.

Hewlett-Packard, led by Chief Executive Officer Mark Hurd, has pledged to offer the same amount of value in spite of the lack of competition for orders, Szygenda said yesterday.

``We understand GM's concerns and are committed to working with them to address those concerns,'' Jeff Kelly, senior vice president of the Americas region at Hewlett-Packard's EDS unit, said in an e-mailed statement.

Szygenda, 60, is seeking to reduce expenses as GM struggles to increase cash flow amid a global credit crunch and the lowest U.S. car sales in 15 years. Pitting technology suppliers against one another for contracts has helped save GM $12 billion over the past decade, he said.

GM rose 18 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $6.40 at 4 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Hewlett-Packard, based in Palo Alto, California, climbed $1.05 to $39.66.

EDS's History

GM bought EDS from its founder, H. Ross Perot, for $2.5 billion in 1984, gaining its own in-house computer operations. Detroit-based GM spun the unit off in 1996, giving EDS more freedom to seek business from the carmaker's rivals.

Hewlett-Packard, the world's biggest PC maker, agreed in May to buy the company for $13.2 billion, more than doubling its computer-services revenue. The company is now the second-largest provider of computer services in the world, trailing International Business Machines Corp. Sales in the services unit rose 14 percent to $4.75 billion in the latest quarter.

Since then, borrowing costs have skyrocketed amid the worst U.S. banking crisis since the Great Depression, spurred by the collapse of investment banks such as Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. The credit freeze has limited access to funding for GMAC LLC, the carmaker's financing arm.

Cutting Spending

GM will spend less money on information technology in 2009 than this year because of the financial crisis, Szygenda said. More than 40 percent of companies have already started reducing their technology spending because of the credit crunch, Forrester Research Inc. said last week.

The company will work to cut operational costs in mature markets, such as the U.S., Szygenda said. He also expects telecommunications and computer companies to trim prices.

U.S. car sales declined the most in September since 1991. GM aims to increase cash flow by $15 billion through the end of 2009, partly by paring spending.

``Every company knows, `I love you for today,''' Szygenda said. ``But tomorrow is an economic decision.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Katie Hoffmann in New York at khoffmann4@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 16, 2008 16:14 EDT