Honda nine-month net profit doubles

TOKYO (AFP) – Japanese automaker Honda said Thursday that its net profit for the nine months to December 2012 more than doubled to $3.2 billion as strong sales in North America and cost-cutting offset a strong yen.

The nation’s third-biggest automaker said the net profit of 291.4 billion yen was up from 139.9 billion yen in the same period the previous year, while sales jumped 28.7 per cent to 7.13 trillion yen.

However, it trimmed its net profit forecast to 370 billion yen for the year to March, down from a previous 375 billion yen.

This week Japan’s biggest automakers – Toyota, Nissan and Honda – announced record sales for 2012, underscoring their recovery from the 2011 quake-tsunami that hit demand and production, while also highlighting strength in Asian and US markets.

Honda, Japan’s number-three automaker, said it logged sales of 3.81 million vehicles for calendar 2012, up from 3.09 million in 2011.

That helped offset weakness in debt-hit Europe and a downturn in China stemming from a diplomatic row that sparked a consumer boycott of Japanese goods in China, the world’s biggest vehicle market.

In October, Honda blamed the spat with Beijing, as well as a strong yen, for a 20 percent cut to its annual profit forecast.