Ford reports $2.7 billion profit for 2009

Detroit: The Ford Motor Company has announced its first full year profits since 2005, saying it earned $2.7 billion in 2009. As an additional bonus for shareholders, it also said it expects to be profitable in 2010.

The announcement marks a swing of $17.5 billion from 2008, when the company lost $14.8 billion. The profits for 2009 equal to 86 cents a share.

The company also ended 2009 with $25.5 billion in cash reserves, which is nearly double the $13.4 billion it had at the start of the year.

For Q4, Ford announced earnings of $868 million, a turnaround from a loss of $6 billion for the same period in 2008.

Its announcement of a profitable 2010 advances the date it expected to become consistently profitable by a year.

''While we still face significant business environment challenges ahead, 2009 was a pivotal year for Ford and the strongest proof yet that our One Ford plan is working and that we are forging a path toward profitable growth by working together as one team, leveraging our global scale,'' Ford's chief executive, Alan R Mulally, said in a statement. ''In every part of the world, we are providing customers with great products, building a stronger business and contributing to a better world.''