"Ford has become a finance company that also happens to make cars, albeit at a loss of hundreds of dollars per vehicle.
In essence, there is the automotive leg and the finance leg, and thanks to these two parts the company's profit and loss account is largely balanced.
Ford's finance unit, Ford Credit, made net profits of $2.5bn during 2005, more than cancelling out the losses made by its North American automotive unit.
Which begs the question: if Ford Credit is the real reason why the company is still able to stand on its own two feet, why bother make any cars at all?"
Eli Pousson
posted over 6 years ago