Higher sales, cost cuts push Honda's first-quarter profits up 19 percent

Improved sales and cost cuts helped automaker Honda Motor Co. shrug off lingering troubles from the Takata air bag recalls to log a nearly 19 percent improvement in its fiscal first-quarter profit. Tokyo-based Honda, which makes the Fit subcompact, Accord sedan and Asimo robot, on Tuesday reported a ¥207.3 billion profit for the April-June period, up from ¥174.6 billion the same period last year. Quarterly sales rose 7 percent to just over ¥3.7 trillion. Honda expects to sell 5.08 million vehicles for the fiscal year through March 2018, up from the nearly 5.03 million vehicles it sold during the last fiscal year. Honda raised its annual profit forecast to ¥545 billion from April's forecast of ¥530 billion. Its made a profit of ¥616.5 billion in the previous year.