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Comment (TOKYO — Honda Motor Co. reported record profit for a fiscal first quarter Friday as sales growth in new markets offset the damage from a stronger yen and soaring material costs.
Honda, Japan's No. 2 automaker, earned a better-than-expected 179.6-billion yen ($1.68-billion U.S.) in the April-June quarter, up 8.1 per cent from the same period the previous year. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had forecast 131.3-billion yen ($1.2-billion) in quarterly profit.
Sales for the quarter dipped 2.2 per cent from a year ago to 2.867-trillion yen ($26.79-billion), largely because the rising yen eroded the value of overseas earnings. If the yen's value had held at levels of a year ago, sales would have jumped about 7 per cent, Honda said.
Riding on its reputation for making cars with good mileage, the Tokyo-based manufacturer of the Civic and Accord compacts has racked up solid results despite worries among the world's automakers about a U.S. slowdown and r...
