The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing a corporate representative, that General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM) has terminated several hundred full-time contract employees at its engineering centre in a suburban Detroit neighbourhood over the weekend.

The Detroit automaker did not immediately answer a Reuters request for comment. Shares of GM increased by roughly 2.5% to $33.86.

About 5,000 salaried employees chose buyouts to leave GM in April, bringing the company closer to its goal of $2 billion in cost savings by the end of 2024.

Reuters in March reported that GM was cutting hundreds of executive-level and salaried jobs.

Automakers have been able to combat the effects of inflation through price increases and increased demand for vehicles. GM reported first-quarter earnings last week that were higher than anticipated, and it increased its projections for full-year profit and cash flow.