GM profit beats estimates on higher sales and vehicle prices

General Motors Co came out with robust results yesterday that surprised analysts and exceeded projections with higher sales and vehicle prices, largely in the US. Extending the good tidings the company said it was targeting a return to  break-even levels in its European operations by mid-decade.

Shares of the automaker were up 10 per cent as investors welcomed better-than-expected results in North America, South America and the International unit that included China as also a better defined roadmap for ending European losses. At the time of it re-entry into the market in the fall of 2010 the GM stock debuted a $33 a share.

The contribution from higher sales volumes and vehicles prices was at $900 million in the quarter.

The automaker's third-quarter net income attributable to common shareholders slid to $1.48 billion, or 89 cents a share. It stood at $1.74 billion, or $1.03 a share, a year earlier. US rival Ford Motor Co yesterday posted a much higher-than-expected profit of $1.63 billion for the quarter.

Revenue was up 2.4 per cent from last year to $37.6 billion, above the $35.7 billion analysts had expected.

In Europe, though the company was expecting a full-year operating loss between $1.5 billion and $1.8 billion, depending on the level of restructuring in the fourth quarter. The actual loss in the region, last year was $747 million.