Honda Motor Co., Japan's second-largest carmaker, said Wednesday it raised its full-year profit forecast after demand for fuel-efficient models in the U.S. and a weaker yen boosted first-quarter profit 16 percent.
Net income in the year ending in March will probably be 625 billion yen, compared with a previous forecast of 575 billion yen, the carmaker said. Profit in the three months to June 30 rose to 166.1 billion yen, or 91.38 yen a share, from 143.4 billion yen, or 78.46 yen, a year earlier.
President Takeo Fukui said the company won customers in the U.S., Honda's biggest market, from General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. with Civic compacts and CR-V sport utility vehicles. A weaker Japanese currency added 50.5 billion yen to Honda's operating profit last quarter as earnings surged from overseas sales.
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