Revenues at Irish arm of motor giant Henry Ford plunge by over €50m

Pre-tax profits at the Irish arm of motor giant Henry Ford last year decreased by 44% as revenues plunged by more than €50m.

New accounts filed by the Cork-based Henry Ford & Son Ltd show that the firm recorded pre-tax profits of €858,000 last year in comparison to €1.55m in 2011.

This followed revenues decreasing by 28% or €53.5m from €192.1m to €138.6m.

Eddie Murphy, managing director of Henry Ford & Son, said yesterday:“No one is happy with a deterioration in revenue and profit, but it is what it is.”

He said the revenue drop was reflective of a difficult environment across the motor industry last year. “It is a difficult environment and do I see it changing any time soon? Not in the foreseeable future.”

Ford Ireland has 45 franchisees across Ireland and Mr Murphy said: “Everyone is eking out an existence and it is a survival existence.”

He said profits for Ford Ireland “will be slightly better in 2013, but it is still difficult”.

Motor industry statistics show Ford had the third highest market share last year with 10.8% of the market behind Toyota and Volkswagen.

Mr Murphy said the new registration system splitting the year into two “has been a real fillip for the industry”.

“From a structural point of view, it has worked really well and has spread out revenues. It has done what it was asked to do.”

The directors’ report states that the decrease in turnover reflects a decrease in demand for new vehicles relative to market demand in the prior year.

No dividend was paid in 2012 after a dividend payout of €70m in 2011. The firm’s shareholder funds last year totalled €1.92m.

The filings record that the company’s operating loss last year amounted to €52,000 after recording an operating loss of €441,000 in 2011.

The operating loss turned to pre-tax profit with €990,000 in bank interest receivable. The firm’s cost of sales declined from €182,737 to €129,595.