GM stock above $33 for first time in 2 years

DETROIT — Shares of General Motors reached an important milestone on Friday, closing above their initial public offering price of $33 for the first time in more than two years.

GM shares closed at $33.42, up 3.2 percent. The auto giant sold shares to the public for $33 in a November 2010 IPO, but they’ve traded below that price since May 4, 2011.

GM’s business is getting stronger. Two weeks ago, GM reported solid first-quarter earnings on robust sales in North America. On Friday, there were signs sales declines may have bottomed out in Europe — where GM has lost money for more than a dozen years.

Shares of all automakers traded in the U.S. show double-digit gains this year. GM and Ford are benefiting from strong sales in the U.S. as well as China.

But GM’s 14 percent gain this year is also notable because of its top shareholder: the U.S. Treasury.

The government has been selling off the GM shares it received after providing the company with a $49.5 billion bailout in 2008 and 2009.

The government has pledged to sell off taxpayers’ remaining 16 percent stake in GM by early next year. The rising stock price may hasten its exit.

That would be fine with GM, which has long complained that government ownership has discouraged some car buyers from considering its cars and trucks and steered some investors away from the shares.