Mitsubishi Returns to Profit in Fiscal 2001

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. posted its first annual profit in three years despite lower sales, helped by cost cutting as part of a turnaround plan with German partner DaimlerChrysler.

Executives said the Japanese auto maker still faced a challenge in repairing its battered corporate image.

Mitsubishi Motors posted a net group profit of $89 million for the fiscal year ended in March, largely on cost-reduction efforts with DaimlerChrysler, which owns 37.3% of Japan’s No. 4 auto maker. Sales for fiscal 2001 totaled $25 billion, down 2% from a year earlier.