Chrysler posts US$116 mln profit in first quarter
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Chrysler Group LLC. on Monday reported 116 million U.S. dollars of net profit for the first quarter of 2011, giving the company its first profit since emerging from bankruptcy in 2009.
The Auburn Hills-based automaker had not recorded a profit since its June 2009 exit from bankruptcy and its tie-up with Fiat SpA. It posted a 197 million dollars net losses for the first quarter in 2010.
The automaker's operating profit was 477 million dollars in the first quarter of 2011, up from 143 million in the first three months of 2010.
The company achieved a string of operating profits throughout 2010 but ended with a net loss of 652 million dollars, partially due to the high interest costs on more than 7 billion dollars in loans the company owes to the United States and Canada from its 2009 bailout.
Its first quarter revenue surged 35 percent to 13.1 billion dollars, spurred by the strong sales of revamped lineup, including the Jeep Grand Cherokee.
"Chrysler Group's improved sales and financial performance in the first quarter show that our rejuvenated product lineup is gaining momentum in the marketplace and resonating with customers, " said Sergio Marchionne, CEO of both Chrysler and Fiat.
Meanwhile, its average vehicle prices rose to 28,300 dollars in the first quarter, from 27,300 dollars a year ago.
And its sales rose 18 percent worldwide during the same period of time, with new models helping the bottom line. And Chrysler's U. S. market share climbed to 9.2 percent for the quarter from 9.1 percent a year ago.
Chrysler, which now operates under the management of Italian automaker Fiat SpA, also announced Monday to seek a 3.5 billion dollars bank loan, a 1.5 billion dollars credit facility and a 2.5 billion dollars debt offer to repay 7.5 billion dollars of the bailout from the U.S. and Canadian governments.
This year will be marked by higher profits and potentially an initial public stock offering after repaying government loans, according to Marchionne.
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