Earnings, Automaker | featured news

The automaker, which continues to struggle overseas, posted first-quarter net income of $1.6 billion, beating Wall Street expectations.

Fiat SpA, the Italian automaker that controls Chrysler LLC, saw fourth quarter earnings more than double thanks to strong North American sales that more than compensated for a weak performance in Europe.

General Motors Co on Wednesday posted a far stronger-than-expected profit and said it was targeting a return to break-even levels in its money-losing European operations by mid-decade after a loss of as much as $1.8 billion in that region this year.

General Motors said Thursday that its second-quarter profit fell 41 percent as losses in Europe and South America cut into strong North American earnings.

Chrysler reported its second-quarter profit soared as its predominately North American operations shielded it from the European economic slowdown on plaguing its U.S. competitors.

Toyota Motor Co. wrapped up one of the worst fiscal year’s in the company’s history with an unexpectedly strong final quarter in which it saw earnings more than quadruple.

Ford Motor Co. is on a roll. Its popular new cars and trucks are grabbing a bigger share of the U.S. market. It's about to erase a big portion of its health care debts. And Ford is adding a significant number of jobs for the first time in years.

Chrysler Group LLC lost a staggering $3.8 billion from the time it left bankruptcy protection June 10 through the end of last year, but the automaker says its fortunes have improved.

Chrysler broke even in September and finished the month with more cash than it had at the end of June, the company's chief executive said on Wednesday.