Again GM (até rima!)

[Waterman]

Nada de novo nos resultados (talvez na rubrica do cash flow)...

Um abraço e como tenho dito, seguir as novidades desta(s) menina(s)

[Paciente]

GM loses $1.1B as North American sales disappoint


NEW YORK (AFX) - General Motors Corp. lost slightly less money in the first quarter than analysts had expected Tuesday as the No. 1 U.S. automaker, undergoing a multimillion dollar restructuring, swung to a loss of more than $1 billion.

GM's net loss was $1.1 billion, or $1.95 a share, including $265 million, or 47 cents a share, of special charges for restructuring in Europe and cutting salaried positions in the U.S.

Its adjusted loss was $839 million, or $1.48 a share, compared with a profit of $1.2 billion, or $2.12 a share in the year-ago quarter. The results matched its earlier outlook and were a penny better than the average analyst forecast of a $1.49 a share loss from Thomson First Call.

"While most of our business units exceeded expectations, the results at GM North America were clearly disappointing," said chairman and chief executive Rick Wagoner.

GM's revenue fell 4.3% to $45.8 billion.

The Detroit manufacturer's North America automotive operations lost $1.3 billion, compared with earnings of $401 million a year ago. "This deterioration reflects lower sales and production volumes, a tougher pricing environment, an unfavorable sales mix, and a continuing, large health-care burden," GM said.

Shares of General Motors , which have hovered around 12-year lows, closed Monday up 59 cents to $26.19.

GM last month slashed its own forecasts from breakeven to a loss of about $1.50 a share, citing weak sales in North America and tough competition from abroad.

Wagoner subsequently took charge of the ailing U.S. operations to help revive sales, pushing aside high-level executives Bob Lutz and Gary Cowger.

Ratings agencies Fitch, Standard & Poor's and Moody's are poised to slash GM's $300 billion in debt to junk status if the automaker doesn't show signs of a turnaround, but signs show that such moves, if made, will come later in the year.

Along with the highly-publicized pension costs woes and fierce competition from the Japanese, GM has had to grapple with waning demand for its gas-chugging SUVs, its most-profitable vehicle segment, amid record fuel prices.

Another headache for GM surfaced last week when the company said federal regulators subpoenaed information concerning certain transactions with auto-parts maker Delphi, which spun off from GM in 1999. Delphi's investigation has centered around $237 million in cash payments made to GM in 2000 as well as $85 million in credits received from GM in 2001.

GM pleaded with union officials last week to help spread the burden of rising health-care costs, which GM predicted could reach $5.6 billion this year. The union said it wouldn't reopen the contract but would work with the structure of the current one to reduce costs.

GM's market share drifted below 26% in the first quarter as Japanese rivals have drawn more and more U.S. consumers to their dealer lots.

Ford Motor will report its first-quarter results Wednesday.