General Motors, which nearly collapsed from the weight of its debts two years ago before reorganizing in a government-sponsored bankruptcy, said Thursday that it earned $4.7 billion in 2010, the most in more than a decade.
It was the first profitable year since 2004 for G.M., which became publicly traded in November, ending a streak of losses totaling about $90 billion.
In addition, G.M. said 45,000 union workers would receive profit-sharing checks averaging $4,300, the most in the company’s history.
Globally, G.M.’s sales rose 12.2 percent in 2010, to 8.39 million, coming within about 30,000 vehicles of retaking the title of world’s largest automaker from Toyota. For the first time, it sold more cars and trucks in China, where its sales rose 28.8 percent from 2009, than in the United States, where sales were up 6.3 percent.
Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/...
As expected, General Motors (GM) announced an annual profit today, a notable event since GM hasn’t had a profitable year since 2004. And it hasn’t made this much money, $4.7 billion, since 1999. This all sounds great. But it’s actually remarkable.
After its 2009 bankruptcy, GM was revamped to generate profits based on a truly dreadful overall North American market. Just for perspective, in 2005, the U.S. market hit 17 million in vehicle sales. After the financial crisis, it shrank to less than 10 million. GM has been streamlined to turn profits when it’s flat on its back — and to rake it in when the market is operating at normal levels.
Read more: http://www.bnet.com/...
http://thingsobamadidright.tumblr.com/
Steering the Domestic Automotive Industry Back to Market
First of all, let me give GM props for the ad embedded above. I was watching a football game the first time I saw it, and as I started to connect the dots, I was impressed from that initial viewing. I know many people thought it was a waste of money, but I disagree and share Jalopnik’s opinion that it was touching.
More importantly, the ad communicates a turning point in the industry. Let’s remember where things stood just two short years ago. Chrysler and GM were at risk of going under and never coming back. Ford was in better shape, but they made it clear that if 2/3 of the Big Three went under, the devastating effect on suppliers would have made it almost impossible for them to keep operating with a domestic supply chain. The economies of Detroit, Ohio, and Indiana, already suffering enough, would have seen local engine and parts companies shutter permanently, never to return. Now, GM is back in the black. Ford is looking good, even threatening Toyota for supremacy in key categories. Chrysler still has some problems, but damn, we went from “the Government may have to always own GM” to GM is withdrawing their application for a loan from the Department of Energy and there’s still a chance taxpayers make money on this deal.
Here’s Austan Goolsbee, Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors, using the “White House White Board” to explain both the background leading up to GM’s bankruptcy and where things are headed now.
Republicans loved to call GM “Government Motors” and say how the President was only interested in federal control over private companies. Some talked about how it was just the first step; soon, they warned, Obama would nationalize the banks and make the big bad government take over everything. As thesmithian noted, they all agreed it just wouldn’t work. But they were wrong. The President didn’t WANT to own GM, and GM didn’t want to be a federal entity. And they aren’t. Things aren’t as great for the automotive industry as they were in the 50’s, but now the domestic industry has a chance again. Given where things were, that’s impressive and definitely something for which the President deserves some dap.
Here are the President’s remarks on the IPO, and the GM commercial above can also be found here.
Thu Jan 05, 2012 at 3:57 AM PT: BUMP