Honda profit jumps on one-off gains

TOKYO - Honda today posted a 133 per cent jump in fourth-quarter net profit, helped by a softer yen, brisk overseas sales and accounting one-offs, but projected weaker-than-expected earnings for this year.

January-March net profit at Japan's third-biggest car maker rose to 219.51 billion yen ($3.05 billion), but fell short of a consensus market estimate for 231 billion yen.

Quarterly operating profit rose 143 per cent to 340.83 billion yen, inflated by a 128 billion yen gain related to pension funds, compared with a consensus forecast for 333.7 billion yen in a survey of 18 brokers by Reuters Estimates.

For the current year to end-March 2007, the maker of the Civic and Accord cars forecast a 7.9 per cent fall in net profit to 550 billion yen, against a consensus forecast for 563.2 billion yen by 20 brokerages surveyed by Reuters Estimates.

The Tokyo-based firm projected 2006/07 operating profit of 750 billion yen, against a mean forecast of 772 billion yen. Stripping out the previous year's pensions related gain, the forecast would represent a 1.2 per cent rise from last year's 740.91 billion yen.

Honda shares gained 8.3 per cent in January-March, just beating Tokyo's transport sector subindex ITEQP, which rose 7.3 per cent.

- REUTERS