Chrysler

DETROIT -- Zippy, inexpensive, environmentally friendly -- oh, and "huggable."Such are the qualities, according to the Chrysler Corp., of the Neon, a bubble-shaped, bug-eyed car it introduced yesterday that will test two propositions: that a small car can make money and that Americans in the 20-something age group can be persuaded to buy a car built by the Big Three.Chrysler has researched those youthful consumers, whom the Big Three fear they have lost -- as they did the Baby Boomers before them -- to the Japanese automakers.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Chrysler Corp. Chairman Lee A. Iacocca, his voice cracking with emotion, bid goodbye to shareholders yesterday at what is expected to be the last annual meeting he will preside over as the company's chief executive."

Auburn Hills, Mich. -- DaimlerChrysler AG's chief financial officer suggested yesterday that the German automaker might jettison its American partner as it tries to cut losses racked up by the Chrysler Group. "We don't exclude anything here," Chief Financial Officer Bodo Uebber said during a conference call on DaimlerChrysler's third-quarter results, which were marred by a $1.48 billion loss at Chrysler. Pressed about the possibility of spinning off Chrysler or pairing it with another automaker, Uebber told reporters and analysts that the company was analyzing the situation and would draw its conclusions afterward.

STUTTGART, Germany - DaimlerChrysler AG lost the support of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which arranged Daimler-Benz's $35 billion takeover of Chrysler two years ago, as the investment bank cut its recommendation and profit forecast for the German automaker yesterday. DaimlerChrysler, facing losses at its U.S.-based Chrysler unit, was downgraded to "market perform" from "market outperform" on concern about rising costs. With its shares falling 33 percent this year, some investors have lost patience.

Chrysler Corp. and the local unit of Westinghouse Electric Corp. are expected to announce today that they will team up on the development of an electric vehicle that could turn the corner toward the next generation of automobiles.Westinghouse declined to comment on the planned announcement, but Tom Kowaleski, a spokesman for Chrysler in Detroit, said the joint development program could advance the technology needed to bring about production of the electric vehicle.The Big Three automakers have tried for more than 15 years to develop electric cars.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Chrysler Corp.'s third-quarter profit almost doubled, the company reported yesterday, easily topping expectations, as sales of its Dodge Ram pickups and restyled minivans helped the automaker boost its U.S. market share to its highest level since the 1950s.Chrysler's profit from operations climbed 91 percent to $735 million, or $1 a share, from 48 cents, or $385 million, in the year-ago period. Analysts had expected earnings of 69 cents a share, according to a survey of 16 analysts by First Call Corp.

TORONTO - The Canadian Auto Workers union said yesterday that DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler faces a "95 percent chance" of a strike tonight because of its refusal to find a new vehicle for an Ontario plant scheduled to close in July and because of its proposals for concessions. "It's impossible to see how we can avoid a strike" before the union's deadline of 11:59 p.m. tonight , union President Buzz Hargrove said in Toronto yesterday after the third-largest U.S. automaker presented its contract offer.

HIGHLAND PARK, Mich. -- Chrysler Corp. ended its long battle with dissident shareholder Kirk Kerkorian by agreeing yesterday to put a Kerkorian ally on the board and to step up its stock repurchase program.In return, the 78-year-old Las Vegas billionaire agreed not to raise his stake in the company for at least five years.Chrysler also formally adopted an "anti-greenmail" policy banning the payment of a premium for shares held by hostile holders in an effort to silence them.Mr. Kerkorian's critics, including Chrysler executives at times, have contended that his intent all along was to have Chrysler buy him out so he could pocket a big profit.

DETROIT -- Chrysler Corp. said yesterday that it lost $82 million in the third quarter, significantly less than analysts had predicted.The results touched off strong buying of Chrysler stock, which rose $1.625 to finish at $12.75 on trading volume of 3.3 million shares.Chrysler's loss was on revenue of $7.5 billion, compared with a loss of $214 million a year ago on revenue of $6.5 billion. For the nine months the automaker has lost $892 million on revenue of $21.1 billion, compared with a nine-month profit last year of $37 million on revenue of $23 billion.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler unit will spend $35 million and add 1,000 workers at a Ram pickup plant in Michigan, the first new jobs since the automaker said last year that it would cut 26,000 positions. A third shift will be added to its Warren factory in mid-2003, enabling it to boost production 21 percent, or by 60,000 trucks annually, spokesman Mike Aberlich said. The plant now has 3,709 workers. Increasing output of the Ram, Chrysler's best-selling vehicle, will let the third-largest U.S. automaker capitalize on the pickup's popularity as demand for other models stalls.