GM profit beats as truck, SUVs sales rebound from COVID lows

By Paul Lienert and Ben Klayman

DETROIT (Reuters) – General Motors Co on Thursday posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit, driven by strong demand for trucks and SUVs in the United States.

The company also said it would generate cash flow of $7 billion to $9 billion during the second half of the year.

GM’s U.S. sales in the third quarter fell 10% due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but results improved each month. In China, GM’s sales in the quarter rose 12%, its first quarterly sales growth in two years.

The Detroit automaker reported net income of $4 billion, or $2.78 a share for the reported quarter, compared with $2.35 billion, or $1.60 a share, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time items, GM earned $2.83 a share, above the $1.38 a share expected by analysts, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

(Reporting by Paul Lienert and Ben Klayman in Detroit; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Anil D’Silva)