福特恢复生机 二手车功不可没
福特汽车首席执行长穆拉利
Ford Motor chief executive Alan Mullaly loves to wax lyrical about the car company's slate of new trucks and cars. But he can thank sales of used vehicles for playing a big part in Ford's surprise third-quarter profit.
福特汽车公司(Ford Motor Co.)首席执行长穆拉利(Alan Mullaly)总爱满怀深情地大赞该公司的新卡车和小汽车系列。不过他可以感谢二手车销售在福特令人惊喜的第三季度利润中扮演了重要角色。
Out of pretax profit of $1.1 billion, excluding special items, $661 million came from the financial services business. Many analysts had been expecting a profit of perhaps $100 million to $200 million, or even a loss, from Ford Motor Credit.
福特业绩除去特殊项目后税前利润为11亿美元，其中6.61亿美元来自金融服务业务。许多分析师此前预期福特汽车信贷公司(Ford Motor Credit) 利润可能在1亿-2亿美元，甚至有可能亏损。
The big swing factor was a sharp increase in the value of used vehicles sold at auction. The Manheim Used Vehicle Value index has risen for nine consecutive months since December 2008's low-point, hitting an all-time peak in September. Higher used-car prices reduce losses on the vehicles that come back to Ford after their leases expire, which it then sells. Pricing of used trucks and sports utility vehicles, which likely account for a sizable proportion of Ford's lease portfolio, have risen particularly strongly.
扭转局面的重大因素是通过拍卖出售的二手汽车价值剧增。Manheim二手车价格指数(Used Vehicle Value index)自2008年12月创下低点以来已经连续9个月上升，9月创下史上最高纪录。福特在汽车租约到期后会回收这些车然后出售，更高的二手车价格降低了在这些车上的损失。二手卡车和运动型多用途车(SUV)的价格上涨尤其强劲，这两种车可能占了福特出租车型的很大一部分。
Is it sustainable? Manheim, at least, suspects used-vehicle prices are reaching a plateau, with prices having weakened noticeably in the last week of September. The dislocation in Detroit this year and efforts by the likes of Ford to slash bloated inventories have helped curb supply. That discipline will need to be maintained.
这种情况能持续吗？至少Manheim怀疑G手车价格是否正趋于稳定，因9月最后一周价格明显走软。美国汽车行业今年的混乱以及福特这类厂商大力削减庞大存货的举措帮助抑制了供应量。这种情形需要保持。
On the new-vehicle front, it remains to be seen how well sales hold up as government 'clunker' programs end. Ford does boast one of the strongest new-product pipelines of any mass-market vehicle manufacturer over the next few years. But while Ford raised its guidance for 2011, it will be next quarter before it issues an updated outlook for 2010. Like any other car maker, it needs a consumer-led recovery that isn't dependent on government steroids to really come into its own.
新车方面，随着美国政府的“旧车换现金”计划终止，销量能否保持尚需拭目以待。福特声称未来几年其新产品线将会是面向大众市场的汽车厂商中实力最强的之一。虽然福特上调了2011年的预期，但它会等到下个季度才会发布更新后的2010年前景。与其他汽车厂商一样，福特需要由消费者引导的复苏，而不是依靠政府刺激措施，如此才能真正恢复。
Liam Denning
