USA- General Motors (GM) posted the largest profit in history, grossing at $7.6 billion in 2011. Although this proved to be an historical moment for this American corporation, trouble in Europe took a large portion of the automaker's fourth-quarter earnings. GM posted record earnings in 2011, just two years after a federal bailout and bankruptcy reorganization, up from its $4.7 billion earnings in 2010.
The numbers had increased at such a high rate, just two years after a federal bailout that it announced will give $7,000 profit-sharing checks to 47,500 blue-collar workers in the U.S. In the last four months of 2011, GM only made $500 million after a charge of $200 million. That averaged to about the same amount the company earned last year.
"Overall, we posted a solid performance for the year and showed steady progress," CEO Dan Akerson said."Obviously, we still have a lot of work to do in some areas, and we're taking the necessary corrective actions to get the ball over the goal line. We will build on these results as we bring more new cars, crossovers and trucks to market.”
Operating income in North America nearly doubled to $1.5 billion. South American facilities swung to a loss after last year’s profit, but European losses remained the same. International operations outside those regions were slightly more profitable, though sales in China increased. In fact, GM sells more cars in China than in North America.
