Despite turning a healthy profit in the third quarter, Johnson Controls Inc. expects lower fourth-quarter earnings in part due to increased commodities costs and a steep downturn in North American vehicle production.
Milwaukee-based Johnson Controls expects North American quarterly auto production to dip to 3,071,000 units, down almost 13 percent from 3,526,000 million units in the fourth quarter last year, Steve Roell, the company's chairman and chief executive officer, said.
"That reduction is just pretty dramatic," Roell said. "This will be the lowest September end-quarter since 1993."
The company was hurt by a number of factors, including the delayed launch of the new Ford F-150 and Dodge Ram pickup trucks and the shutdown of Toyota Tundra pickup production from August through November, company executives said during Johnson Controls' third-quarter earnings conference call.
