Asian carmakers' results seen up; sales outlook eyed

Quarterly earnings at Asian carmakers are set for a big improvement thanks to recovering demand and cost cuts, and analysts are turning their focus to how fast they can get back to sustained, pre-crisis growth.

After the industry's worst downturn in three decades last year, the January-March quarter saw sales rise around the world even in the mature Japanese and European markets, where consumers took advantage of government incentives aimed at reviving demand.

As a result, operating profits at Japan's Honda Motor Co and Nissan Motor Co are seen swinging back into the black in their final, January-March quarter, according to consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Toyota Motor Co is a notable exception to the improved outlook. After posting profits in the previous two quarters, the world's largest automaker is expected to revert to an operating loss in the March quarter, which included the worst recall crisis in its history. Still, the loss is expected to be less than a third of last year's, when the global crisis was raging.

South Korean rival Hyundai Motor Co, meanwhile, is set to continue its charge with a near quadrupling of its first-quarter profits, thanks to its big presence in the fast-growing Chinese and Indian markets, as well as its aggressive push into the United States.

China's biggest automaker, SAIC Motor Corp, is set to post a more than quadrupling in first quarter profit, benefiting from Beijing's policy incentives.

Analysts are upbeat about SAIC's outlook for the rest of the year on robust automobile demand especially in second- and third-tier cities.