Profit at Japan's Honda doubles on healthy global auto sales

Tokyo, Aug. 10: Honda reported Wednesday that its April-June profit more than doubled on healthy sales of its motorcycles and cars, as the Japanese company also received a perk from favourable exchange rates.

Honda Motor Co. said its fiscal first quarter profit totalled 363 billion yen ($2.5 billion), up from 149 billion yen.

Quarterly sales jumped 21% to 4.6 trillion yen ($32 billion). Honda’s financial service division also reported growing sales.

Honda, which makes the Fit subcompact, Honda e electric car and Gold Wing motorcycle, said its profitability improved, especially in North America, where production recovered.

Automakers around the world were slammed by supply shortages because of production delays related to social restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. But such restrictions have eased, allowing production to pick up again.

Auto sales were about the same in Japan in the latest quarter as in the previous year, while dropping significantly in China because of intense competition from makers of battery electric vehicles, Honda said.

Honda is banking on growth in EVs in the U.S. market, where it recently announced it is joining six other companies in the creation of a high-powered charging network across North America. (AP)