General Motors has reported better-than-expected earnings in the third quarter, sending shares up 6.3% in morning trading.
The car manufacturer said on Wednesday that it sold fewer cars during the third quarter but sole them at higher prices.
Net profit for the group was $2.53 billion, a significant increase than the $3 billion loss for the same period last year.
Analysts expected revenues of $34.85 billion. General Motors achieved revenue of $35.79 billion.
The CFO, Dhivya Suryadevara, said: “Our disciplined approach to the U.S. market, combined with strength in China and further growth of GM Financial, drove a very strong quarter.”
“We will continue to take actions to mitigate headwinds including foreign currency volatility and commodity costs.”
Suryadevara added that the group also expects fourth-quarter performance to be strong.
Sales dropped by 14.7% from this period last year but General Motors added an average of about $800 per vehicle. Sales of the Cadillac broke sales in China.
Jeff Schuster, the president of Americas operations and global vehicle forecasts at LMC Automotive, said: “Affordability may be the canary in the coal mine for the level of auto sales as we close out 2018 and begin to look at 2019. Transaction prices are still edging higher.”
“This is a combination that could cause consumers to be squeezed out of the new-vehicle market, putting pressure on volume even if other fundamentals are favourable.”
Shares in General Motors have fallen nearly 19% since the start of 2018.
Shares in the group (NYSE: GM) are trading +8.14% at 36,27 (1435GMT).