
US car manufacturer Ford has reported net income of $1.7bn (£1.08bn) for the third quarter, a rise of 68% on the same period in 2009 and is its 6th straight quarterly profit..
The company’s improved performance came as it increased its share of the US market and buyers paid more for its cars and trucks.
CEO Alan Mulally said that new cars and aggressive cost-cutting measures had helped it to boost profits.
“This was another strong quarter and we continue to gain momentum with our One Ford [transformation] plan,” said Mr Mulally.
“Delivering world class products and aggressively restructuring our business has enabled us to profitably grow even at low industry volumes in key regions.
Ford was the only big US carmaker that was not subject to a US government bail-out during the financial crisis and the firm has now announced new plans to reduce what it owes, saying by the end of the year it hopes to have as much cash as debt. It also said it would pre-pay the remaining $3.6bn of debt owed to the VEBA retiree health care trust by November.
The firm also said that its remodelled Explorer SUV, with a 30% fuel economy improvement over the current model, would go on sale in North America later this year.
Source: BBC News
Most commented