By Andrew Ganz
Thursday, Aug 2nd, 2012 @ 8:25 am
 
General Motors' second quarter earnings were down 41 percent from last year, but the automaker's $1.49 billion net income did best Wall Street's projections.

That 1.49 figure translates into earnings per share of 90 cents, which topped analysts' estimates of 74 cents per share.

GM's North American operations led the way with $1.965 billion in net profit, even though the automaker lost some market share during the quarter. Last month, its sales were down 6 percent in the United States, making it one of just two major automakers to see a performance decline in July. However, GM is clearly able to build cars at a far more profitable rate, which has been its goal sine emerging from bankruptcy in 2009.

Last year, GM earned about $2.25 billion during the same quarter.

Europe's stagnant economy, combined with overcapacity and high manufacturing costs, forced GM to post a $361 million loss in the market. That hardly compares favorably to the $102 million GM eked out of the market during the second quarter of 2011.

Meanwhile, GM's International Operations division, which includes everywhere outside of North America and Europe, posted a solid turnaround to a $557 million profit compared to last year's $19 million loss. GM has seen solid figures from its Chevrolet brand expansion across the globe, especially in China and South America.

The quarter was GM's 10th consecutive in the black.
  

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