WASHINGTON — General Motors, in another sign of its progress since a government-led bankruptcy, said Thursday it is withdrawing its application for $14.4 billion in federal loans it had sought to help build more fuel-efficient cars.

GM, which has posted three straight profitable financial quarters since its 2009 bankruptcy, said it no longer needs the loans because the company’s cash position has improved. GM applied for the loans in 2009 to modernize plants to build fuel-efficient vehicles.

Analysts said the decision amounted to another positive step for the company, which sought bankruptcy protection in 2009 and accepted nearly $50 billion in government help. U.S. taxpayers still own 33 percent of GM.