Detroit Three 2013 Business Performance Report

All three made good profits in the US and losses in Europe. Big difference in Chinese sales

2014/03/07

Summary

 The notable feature seen in the sustained recovery in the North American auto market is the robust sales of trucks; 2013 is being called "the year of the truck". Strong sales were seen for light- and medium-size SUVs. Especially for the Big Three that all build strong full-size pickup trucks, their total market share combined rose from 45.1% to 45.7% year-over-year (y/y), an increase of 0.6 points. As for Japanese OEMs, their combined market share also gained year-over-year, growing 0.3 points from 37.1% to 37.4%, owing this improvement to the weaker yen-to-dollar rates.

 Among the Big Three, Ford achieved the highest operating profit and net profit, increasing its sales worldwide by working under the banner of the "One Ford" strategy. Even in the North American region, Ford's profit outpaced that of GM, which wasn't able to grow its market share, even in spite of launching several new models. In January 2014, Fiat-Chrysler, after  hard negotiating, was finally able to completely acquire the remaining 41.5% shares from the VEBA (the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust). Fiat held an executive board meeting at the end of January, during which the name of the newly merged company was decided, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA).

 Even though the US Big Three together were able to rack-up huge earnings in North America, supported by robust sales of both full-size pickup trucks and also SUVs, the three together suffered significant losses in Europe, which was a common factor among them. However, there was a huge discrepancy in terms of performance among the three in China, where GM's sales increased 11.4% y/yto 3.16 million units; Ford's increased 49% to 936,000; and Fiat-Chrysler's sales reached 50,000 units.

2013 Detroit Three Comparison (USD 1 million)
GM Ford FCA
Revenues 155,427 146,917 118,938
EBIT 8,578 8,569 4,071
(EBIT/Revenues) 5.5% 5.8% 3.4%
Net Income 5,346 7,155 2,673

Note 1, EBIT stands for Earnings Before Interest and Taxes; Ford's EBIT is actually Pre-tax results
Note 2, FCA USD amount is calculated by using 1 euro: 1.37 USD exchange rate

  US Big 3 Sales by Region

US Big 3 Profit by Region


Related Reports:
North American International Auto Show 2014: US OEMs (Jan. 2014)
US Pickup Truck Market: On the rebound (Nov. 2013)

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