Automakers are seeing enhancements within the provide of pc chips, however shortages proceed to disrupt manufacturing.
The most recent studying on the scenario comes from Ford Motor, which mentioned Wednesday that its second-quarter profit had risen nearly 20 percent from a yr earlier, when the worldwide chip scarcity took a extreme toll on its operations.
The automaker recorded a revenue of $667 million, up from $561 million a yr earlier. Its income was up considerably, to $40.2 billion from $26.8 billion, because of rising automobile gross sales and better costs.
Globally, Ford bought simply over a million automobiles within the newest quarter, a pointy enhance from 764,000 within the 2021 interval.
“We’re seeing pent-up demand, and our sellers are promoting automobiles as shortly as we are able to produce them,” Ford’s chief monetary officer, John Lawler, mentioned in a convention name.
However most of these numbers are nonetheless under what could possibly be thought-about regular. Earlier than the pandemic, in 2018 and 2019, Ford’s second-quarter gross sales topped 1.4 million automobiles — even with a weaker mannequin line than the present one.
Within the final two years, Ford redesigned its F-150 pickup and has added a number of automobiles producing buzz, together with the brand new Bronco sport utility automobile, the electrical Mustang Mach E and the electrical F-150 Lightning. It has additionally stopped making vehicles for the U.S. market aside from the Mustang coupe.
On Tuesday, Common Motors additionally reported greater income and was helped by an uptick in its provide of chips. Nevertheless it, too, isn’t getting as many chips as it will like, which leaves the corporate unable to promote as many automobiles as clients wish to purchase.
G.M. mentioned this month that it was holding 95,000 automobiles that had been manufactured with out sure digital elements affected by the chip scarcity. The corporate expects to complete them and ship them to sellers by the top of the yr.
On Wednesday, Ford mentioned it had 53,000 automobiles awaiting closing digital components earlier than they are often shipped.
Ford, G.M. and different automakers are benefiting from excessive costs of recent automobiles. That was one cause for the practically 50 % leap in Ford’s second-quarter income. On the similar time, nevertheless, inflation can also be pushing up the price of uncooked supplies and components. Ford mentioned it anticipated a $4 billion enhance in the price of supplies this yr.
G.M. has mentioned its prices will rise by about $5 billion. Its second-quarter revenue fell 40 % to $1.7 billion, largely due to greater prices.
Mr. Lawler, Ford’s chief monetary officer, mentioned his firm could be properly ready if the economic system slipped right into a recession. It has ample money, its seller inventories are low, and it holds a considerable order financial institution for Broncos and different automobiles, he mentioned.
“We’re in a lot better form heading into a possible recession than at another time I can consider,” Mr. Lawler added.
He additionally mentioned Ford was reshaping nearly all elements of the corporate. “We’re not cost-competitive right this moment,” he mentioned, including that job cuts had been attainable.
“As new expertise are wanted, outdated expertise aren’t required anymore, and there could possibly be modifications to the varieties of expertise we’ve within the firm,” he mentioned.
This yr, Ford divided its operations into two divisions. One focuses on electrical automobiles and is anticipated to develop quickly and require substantial investments in new applied sciences and vegetation. The opposite focuses on making gasoline-powered fashions and can emphasize controlling prices and producing earnings.
