Chrysler 2013 Annual Report Download - page 10

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Letter from the Chief Executive Officer
Dear Shareholders,
The Group has just closed another very significant year, particularly with regard to the integration process between Fiat and Chrysler.
What we had achieved in industrial, commercial and cultural terms laid the necessary ground work to complete that process with the completion
of the acquisition of full ownership of Chrysler.
We believed from the beginning that the integration between Fiat and Chrysler needed to take place in practice even before it did on paper.
For the past four and a half years, we have been working to integrate our respective traditions, transform our differences into strengths and
break down geographic and cultural barriers.
The two groups have learned to work alongside each other in a spirit of cooperation and have made each other stronger through the sharing
of ideas, know-how and experience.
Each with their own distinct identity, Fiat and Chrysler have shared the spirit and values of an organization intent on distinguishing itself not only
in terms of the excellence of its products, but also for its commitment, integrity and transparency.
As you know, following a lengthy negotiation, on January 1st of this year we reached an agreement with the VEBA that cleared the way for us
to acquire full control of Chrysler.
Although this was an historic milestone for Fiat, in reality it simply represents the formalization of the work the two organizations had already
done to create a single group with extraordinary potential at the technical, professional and human level.
Together we have created a leading global automaker that ranks as the seventh largest in the world and the consolidated results for 2013
demonstrate the benefits of this union.
Worldwide vehicle shipments were up 3% over the prior year to 4.4 million units.
Revenues totaled €87 billion, increasing 3% in nominal terms and 7% on a constant currency basis.
Trading profit totaled €3.4 billion and net profit was nearly €2 billion.
At year end, available liquidity totaled €22.7 billion.
In order to maintain a balanced level of liquidity following the acquisition of the minority stake in Chrysler, the Board of Directors has decided
not to recommend a dividend on Fiat shares for 2013.
Overall, a positive performance for the mass-market brands in North America and Asia-Pacific more than compensated for the continuing
weakness in the European market and the slow-down in Latin America.
At the same time, our Luxury Brands posted strong growth and Components made a positive contribution.
Looking at the performance of our mass-market operations by region, in NAFTA we continued to outperform the market, with sales up 8%
over the prior year.
In the U.S., we closed the year with 45 consecutive months of year-over-year sales gains and our strongest annual sales since 2007.
Letter from the Chief Executive Officer