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Profits Diminish for GM in 2018’s First Quarter

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GM picked up the award for “Overall Loyalty to Manufacturer” for the 2016 model year

Photo: © General Motors

General Motors said Thursday that it brought in a net income of $1.1 billion for 2018’s first quarter. That’s down 59.8% from last year.
The automaker’s quarterly operating profits came in at $2.6 billion, a 26.6% decline from 2017. Revenue as a whole was $36.1 billion for the quarter, down 3.1% from a year ago.

GM cited a couple of reasons for its reduced profits: $942 million in restructuring costs for the company’s South Korean unit, and production downtime brought on by the introduction of new pickup models. According to GM, the South Korea restructuring, which is still being finalized, will eventually save the company between $400 million and $500 million a year.

“Results this quarter were in line with our expectations with planned, lower production in North America related to the transition to our all-new Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra. We are on plan to deliver another strong year in 2018,” said GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra.

For the quarter, GM delivered 715,794 vehicles in the U.S. and 986,052 in China.


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2019 Chevrolet Silverado Flowtie

GM is expecting the all-new 2019 Chevy Silverado to contribute heavily to the company’s profitability this year

The automaker said all its operating segments were profitable in the first quarter. In North America, profits came out to $2.2 billion, while international operations brought in $200 million.

In 2017, GM brought in $12.8 billion in profits, but also took a $3.9 billion loss stemming from tax law changes and its sale of Opel-Vauxhall.

For 2018, the automaker is pinning its hopes on high-margin products like its new 2019 Chevy Silverado and 2019 GMC Sierra and Sierra Denali pickup models, along with continued strong crossover sales. Unlike Ford, though, GM isn’t planning to give up on the sedan segment yet.


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News Sources: The Detroit News, Detroit Free Press