Ford 2012 second-quarter profit drops sharplyJuly 25, 2012 - 17:31 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Ford, the second-largest U.S. automaker, said Wednesday, July 25 second-quarter profit dropped sharply, as losses in Europe and overseas cut into North American gains, according to AFP. Ford reported profit in the quarter of $1.0 billion, less than half of what it earned a year ago. The results included a $404 million loss in Europe. Revenue of $33.3 billion marked a decline of $2.2 billion from the 2011 second quarter. Ford Motor Company said profits were driven by Ford North America and financial business Ford Credit, delivering the company's 12th consecutive quarterly pre-tax operating profit. Ford North America generated near-record pre-tax operating profit of $2 billion in the April-June period, and the company said its outlook for 2012 North America profits remains unchanged. In Europe, where Ford and other automakers have been suffering from slack sales amid the eurozone's sovereign debt crisis, the U.S. automaker said it now expects its full-year loss to exceed $1 billion. "The company recognizes the seriousness of the situation in Europe, and views the challenges the industry faces as more structural than cyclical in nature," the company, based in Dearborn, Michigan, said. "While Ford is affected significantly because of its strong presence in the region, the company understands what is needed to achieve profitability and to generate an appropriate return on investments." Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | Get Started: An educational platform for young startuppers The Get Started program which operates in two phases is an important platform for young startuppers. Byblos Bank Armenia celebrates Students' Day with scholarship recipients YSU students who received scholarships from Byblos Bank Armenia gathered in a casual setting to meet with the Bank's CEO, Hayk Stepanyan. Azerbaijan extends Rune Vardanyan’s arrest by 5 months A court in Azerbaijan has extended the arrest of former Nagorno-Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan by five months. Armenia border residents dissatisfied with delimitation Residents Kirants are dissatisfied with the results of the delimitation of the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. |