TOKYO—Toyota Motor Corp on Tuesday posted a worse-than-expected 25 percent drop in quarterly profit and cut its annual output target, as the Japanese firm battles surging material costs and a persistent semiconductor shortage. The world’s biggest automaker by sales also warned that it remained difficult to predict the future after posting its fourth consecutive quarterly…

The chip shortage-driven auto production slump was the single biggest factor depressing U.S. economic output in the third quarter, shaving over 2 percentage points off the gross domestic production (GDP) number, which disappointed with its below-expectations print. The U.S. economy expanded at an annualized pace of 2.0 percent in the third quarter, the Commerce Department’s…

Investors who added Ford Motor Company stock to their portfolios one year ago know the meaning of “Built Ford Tough.” Since October 2020, Ford stock’s one-year return has outperformed a number of the world’s most popular automobile, electric vehicle, and clean energy stocks: General Motors Company, Tesla Inc., Nio Inc.-ADR, and Plug Power Inc. Ford…

MEXICO CITY—Japanese automaker Nissan will carry out temporary work stoppages at two Mexican plants for several days in October because of production adjustments needed to manage a shortage of semiconductor chips, its Mexico unit said on Wednesday. Nissan will halt operations at its plant 2 in the central state of Aguascalientes for 11 days in…

LONDON/TOKYO—Global manufacturing activity took a big hit from supply chain bottlenecks and escalating costs, exacerbated by pandemic-induced factory shutdowns in Asia and signs of slowing Chinese growth, surveys showed on Friday. While countries where outbreaks of the Delta coronavirus variant receded saw an improvement in activity, growth shrank in some as chip shortages and supply…

DETROIT—Despite a computer chip shortage that temporarily closed some of its factories, General Motors made a healthy $2.8 billion net profit in the second quarter. The earnings came even though GM plants cranked out 200,000 fewer vehicles than they did during the same period in 2019, the last comparable quarter before the COVID-19 pandemic. The…

DETROIT—General Motors posted a healthy $2.8 billion second-quarter profit Wednesday, but its cautious outlook for the rest of the year spooked investors. The Detroit automaker made the strong profit despite a global shortage of computer chips that have forced it and other companies to temporarily close factories. While GM raised its outlook for the year,…

DETROIT—General Motors’ profit fell 4.5 percent in 2020, but a strong second half more than offset the effects of pandemic-related factory closures and a costly airbag recall. The Detroit automaker said Wednesday it made $6.43 billion as demand for its vehicles surged late in a year dominated by coronavirus upheaval. In the fourth quarter, the…

DETROIT—General Motors’ profit fell 4.5 percent in 2020, but a strong second half more than offset the effects of pandemic-related factory closures and a costly airbag recall. The Detroit automaker stated on Feb. 10 that it made $6.43 billion as demand for its vehicles surged late in a year dominated by coronavirus upheaval. In the…

PARIS/MILAN—Fiat Chrysler (FCA) and PSA said on Monday that investors had given their blessing to a $52 billion merger to create the world’s fourth largest automaker, and shares in the new company, named Stellantis, would start trading in two weeks. With annual production of around 8 million vehicles worldwide and revenues of more than 165…