Strong global Jeep sales helped Fiat Chrysler post record first-quarter global earnings despite continued weakness in in Latin America and Asia.
Net income rose to 478 million euros ($539 million), the automaker said today.
FCA said its first-quarter adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) nearly doubled to $1.56 billion in the quarter.
FCA shares fell 1.8 percent to close the day at $8.03.
Shipments of Jeep climbed 15 percent in the quarter to 326,000 units as the automaker expands the SUV brand globally.
Net global revenues climbed 3 percent to $30 billion, at today’s exchange rate, though total shipments declined 1 percent to 1,086,000 vehicles.
The company said its net industrial debt rose to $7.45 billion from $5.75 billion on seasonality and the impacts of foreign exchange rates. FCA is the only major automaker with a net industrial debt.
FCA said its profit margin in North America, its largest market, doubled to 7.2 percent from the same quarter last year, while the profit margin in Europe, the Middle East and Africa quadrupled to 1.9 percent.
• Download Fiat Chrysler's Q1 results as a PDF, above right.
The company was profitable in Latin America, earning $12.4 million in the region despite a 24 percent drop in shipments and a 15 percent drop in revenues. The profit in Latin America compares to a $73.3 million loss in today’s dollars during the same quarter last year.
In its Asia Pacific region, FCA’s profits dropped 82 percent to $13.5 million on a 47 percent drop in shipments and a 37 percent drop in revenues.
The company confirmed its guidance for the year, predicting that it would end 2016 with more than $124 billion in net revenues, more than $2.14 billion in profits and net industrial debt of less than $5.64 billion, at today’s exchange rate.
Fiat Chrysler Q1 results
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