Chrysler 3Q profit up 80 percent - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

Strong U.S. sales powered Chrysler to a healthy third-quarter profit.

The automaker reports net income of $381 million, up 80 percent from $212 million a year earlier. The profit was due mainly to a 13-percent sales increase in the U.S., where Chrysler does three quarters of its business. The company sold nearly 417,000 cars and trucks in the U.S. under the Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Fiat and Chrysler brands.

Under the ownership of Italy's Fiat, Chrysler has been transformed since its 2009 trip through bankruptcy protection. It has posted profits since early last year and is now propping up Fiat, which is struggling with dropping sales in Europe.

Unlike Detroit rivals General Motors and Ford, Chrysler has few sales in Europe and its profits aren't being eroded by losses there.

Chrysler's sales have been helped by a series of revamped cars and trucks that began rolling out in 2010, including the Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV, the Ram pickup and the Chrysler 200 midsize sedan.

The company's quarterly revenue rose 18 percent to $15.5 billion as global sales increased 12 percent.

The company earned $1.29 billion in the first nine months of the year, and it reaffirmed a 2012 profit forecast of $1.5 billion.

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