General Motors (GM) returned to the green in the fourth quarter thanks to a rebound in vehicle sales at the end of the year and plans to continue to push up profits in 2021 despite a shortage of semiconductors.
The chip deficiency that affects all major automakers around the world has indeed forced GM to suspend production at three factories for at least a month.
Read also: Shortage of microchips: General Motors extends the closure of three factories by one month
This setback should cost him between 1.5 and 2 billion dollars.
But the number one automobile in the United States still expects an operating profit of between 10 and 11 billion dollars for the whole year, against 9.7 billion in 2020.
GM also says that these difficulties do not in any way call into question its commitment to the development of new electric vehicles: the manufacturer plans to offer 30 models in 2025 and has set itself the goal of no longer building by 2035. cars with polluting emissions.
In the fourth quarter, the group saw its turnover increase by 22% to 37.52 billion dollars, more than the 36.12 billion expected.
Its net profit reached $ 2.8 billion, where the group had lost 194 million last year around the same time.
Its adjusted earnings per share, excluding one-time items, the preferred measure of Wall Street investors, stood at $ 1.93, where analysts had expected $ 1.64.
For the year as a whole, sales fell 11% to $ 122.48 billion.
The group's sales in fact suffered a halt in the spring, when the spread of Covid-19 led to the temporary closure of factories and many dealers.
