Fiat's 4Q Profit Grew 5%

Fiat SpA posted a consolidated trading profit, which includes its Chrysler Group affiliate, of €931 million for the final quarter of 2013, up 5% from the same period a year earlier.

Revenue grew 10% to €24 billion. The company's vehicle shipments rose 8% to 1.2 million units.

Chrysler's profitability helped multiply Fiat's net earnings in September-December more than fivefold to €1.3 billion.

Fiat says fourth-quarter revenue from its mass-market brands rose 17% to €13.3 billion in North America and surged 62% to €1.3 billion in Asia Pacific. Revenue slipped 3% to €4.4 billion in Europe and plunged 23% to €2.2 billion in South America.

The company's board opted to help maintain Fiat's liquidity by not issuing a dividend after completing the Chrysler acquisition last week.

For the full year, Fiat Group's consolidated trading profit fell 4% to €3.4 billion. Net income more than doubled to €2 billion, including special items and Chrysler's results. When those two contributions are excluded, Fiat's net loss widened to €911 million from a loss of €787 million in 2012.

The group's revenue grew 3% to €86.8 billion in 2013. Global vehicle shipments advanced 3% to 4.4 million units.

Fiat expects its revenue this year to grow about 7% to €93 billion. It expects an annual trading profit of €3.6 billion-€4 billion, up from €3.4 billion last year but well below of the €4.7 billion-€5.2 billion range it predicted for 2014 two years ago.

Fiat anticipates that its net income this year will fall as much as two-thirds to a range of €600 million-€800 million.