Suzuki posts record $814 million net profit for FY13

 

Suzuki Motor Corp , Japan's No.4 automaker, booked a record 80.4 billion yen in net profit for the year ended March, up 49.2 % year-on-year, helped by record vehicle sales.

 

Suzuki, the parent company of India's biggest automaker Maruti Suzuki India, expects net profit to grow by 12% in the year ending March 2014 as the yen weakens against local currencies in key markets India and Indonesia.

 

Suzuki, which ended its unprofitable U.S. car sales business last year, sold 2.66 million cars globally in the year ended March, up 3.9% from the previous year. It expects to sell 2.80 million cars in the year ending March 2013, up 5.4%.

 

Its shares have risen 7% since early January, a modest gain compared with bigger rivals Toyota Motor Corp  and Nissan Motor Co , up 35 and 21% respectively. The Nikkei index is up 33%.

 

Suzuki's motorcycle business booked an operating loss of 11.9 billion yen in the year ended March. The company aims to bring it back into profit in two years, Chief Executive Osamu Suzuki told reporters.