Fiat reports 78 percent rise in 2007 net earnings

0 Comments | AFP, January, 2008

MILAN (AFP) — Italian industrial giant Fiat on Thursday reported a 78 percent jump in 2007 net earnings, a performance that confirmed a pronounced turnaround for the group.

Fiat, whose principal unit is Fiat Auto, said net earnings last year came to 2.05 billion euros (3.0 billion dollars), slightly above market estimates of up to 2.04 billion euros, and forecast profit in a range of 2.4 to 2.6 billion euros in 2008.

Sales are projected to rise to more than 60 billion euros this year after a gain of 13 percent to 58.5 billion euros in 2007.

The results provided further evidence of the success of a deep restructuring program launched three years ago, which included the introudction of new car models such as the Panda and the Fiat 500 by the auto unit.

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