Sales and Profit Increase 19% at Superior Industries

Superior Industries International, a Van Nuys-based producer of automobile wheels, said its third-quarter profit and sales climbed 19% from a year earlier.

In the quarter ended Sept. 30, Superior’s net income rose to $3.02 million from $2.53 million a year earlier, while its sales increased to $53.5 million from $45.1 million.

Superior, a leading maker of wheels for the major U.S. auto makers, noted that the gains came during a traditionally slow quarter, when domestic car makers are retooling their plants for the new model year.

For the first nine months of 1989, Superior’s earnings rose 27%, to $11.2 million from $8.80 million a year earlier. Its nine-month sales increased 29%, to $185.2 million from $143.5 million.