Ford and Honda CEO expect auto sales to rebound later this year

How much longer until the automotive industry stays in this depressing slump of decreasing demand? Not much longer if you’re patient. According to Ford’s CEO Alan Mulally and Honda’s CEO Takeo Fukui, auto sales in the U.S. will start showing improvement in the later part of 2009.

Mulally said that he is confident that car and truck sales are beginning to stabilize worldwide and will show a modest recovery later this year. Ford told its shareholders yesterday it hopes to bring profit as soon as 2011 without the help of government loans.

Honda’s CEO Takeo Fukui said that the company’s earnings will hit bottom this year and will begin to show improvement in the second half of 2009.

“The last (January-March) quarter was the nadir, and things will gradually start to improve in the first two quarters (of this year),” Takeo Fukui said in an interview with Reuters. “I’m definitely expecting the second half to turn up, and on an annual basis I think this year will be the floor.”

– By: Kap Shah

Source: Detroit News and Reuters