GM, Ford Report Major Drop in Earnings : Economy: Both companies blame some of the second-quarter declines on business uncertainty in Brazil.

General Motors Corp. said today that its second-quarter profit slid 40% from a year ago, and Ford Motor Co. reported that its earnings tumbled 45% in the same period.

Both companies said part of the reason for their earnings declines stems from economic uncertainty in Brazil, where both companies make vehicles.

GM, the nation’s largest auto maker, said it earned $900.1 million, or $1.32 a share, during the second quarter compared with $1.5 billion, or $2.23 a share, during the same period last year.

Its second-quarter revenue rose 1.2% to $33.9 billion from $33.5 billion.

For the first half of the year, GM’s earnings fell 46.7% to $1.6 billion, or $2.34 a share, from $3 billion, or $4.60 a share, a year ago.

Revenue for the first six months fell 4.2% to $64 billion from $66.8 billion last year.

Ford said it earned $770.7 million, or $1.67 a share, during the April-June period this year compared with $1.4 billion, or $3 a share, last year.

The earnings came on revenues of $26.9 billion, up 3.9% from $25.9 billion a year ago.

The GM and Ford figures were in line with what Wall Street analysts estimated. Chrysler Corp. is expected to announce its results for the period next Tuesday.

GM and Ford each have large operations in Brazil--GM its own and Ford with West German auto maker Volkswagen AG in the Autolatina joint project.

Earlier this year, the Brazilian government put the brakes on the nation’s economy under which inflation was running at an annual rate of more than 1,000%. Vehicle production ceased earlier this year and is inching back toward normal levels.

On Wednesday, two of GM’s three main subsidiaries reported profit increases while one reported a decline. General Motors Acceptance Corp. said it earned $301.6 million in the second quarter, up 12.2% from last year, and Electronic Data Systems Corp. said it earned $125.3 million, up 19.5%.

GM-Hughes Electronics Corp., the company’s main defense contractor, said it earned $189.5 million during the period, down 21.1% from a year ago.

For the first half of the year, Ford’s earnings fell 56.7% to $1.2 billion, or $2.77 a share, from $3 billion, or $6.45 a share, during the first six months of 1989.

First-half revenue fell 2.5% to $50.5 billion from $51.8 billion.

Ford said profits from its worldwide automotive operations fell 55.9% to $529.2 million during the second quarter from $1.2 billion last year.

The company’s financial services operations posted a 39.8% increase in second-quarter earnings to $241.5 million.