Daimler gives up stake in Chrysler

German carmaker Daimler has marked a definitive separation from Chrysler by making a deal to give up its 19.9 percent stake in the US firm and forgiving its outstanding loans, the company has said.   Under the deal, Daimler has also agreed to three annual payments of $200 million (£137 million) into Chrysler's pension plans.   "In this way, Daimler is helping to secure pension payments to former employees of DaimlerChrysler," it said in a statement.   Daimler said it expects the agreement to reduce its second quarter earnings by about $700 million, and that the loans it gave to Chrysler when it sold the company had already been written off in its 2008 financial statements.   In exchange, Chrysler and Cerberus have agreed to waive any claims against Daimler, including the accusations made in 2008 that Daimler allegedly improperly managed certain issues and provided incomplete information over the 2007 sale of Chrysler.   Daimler bought Chrysler in 1998 but sold most of the loss-making unit to Cerberus Capital Management in 2007.   Chrysler had announced earlier this year a cost-cutting deal with its main US union as it tries to restructure its business.   The struggling Detroit carmaker has until 30 April to complete its restructuring in order to gain further state loans, without which it may have to enter bankruptcy protection. Chrysler has already received a $4 billion loan from the US government.   The company added that once the agreement is complete, "the relationship between Daimler and Chrysler will solely consist of supplier-customer relations."