Economy and lineup propel Ford

Ford Motor Co.The automaker posted its best first-quarter profit since 1998 thanks to an improving economy and a lineup of fuel-efficient vehicles that reached showrooms as gasoline prices surged.

New arrivals like the Ford Explorer -- which gets 20 percent better fuel economy than the old version -- and the 40-mile-per-gallon Fiesta subcompact are selling well in the United States. Company profits are growing around the world. And Ford is charging more for its cars, helping offset higher costs of steel and other materials.

The outlook for the rest of the year is also positive. Ford can likely keep its prices high because of earthquake-related shortages at rivals such as Toyota. Consumer confidence is growing. Ford predicts U.S. sales will rebound from a 30-year low of 10.4 million in 2009 to about 13 million this year.

On Tuesday, Ford said net income rose 22 percent to $2.6 billion. It was the company's eighth straight quarterly profit in its climb back from near-bankruptcy five years ago.

Revenue rose 18 percent to $33.1 billion. In Asia, Ford's revenue jumped 31 percent to $2.1 billion.

Amazon.com Inc.The world's biggest online retailer said that its net income fell 33 percent in the latest quarter, a steeper drop than Wall Street expected as the company battles stronger competition from Wal-Mart and other rivals.

The numbers reflect the competitive challenges for Amazon and the impact of higher costs of expansion. Amazon's expenses increased by nearly half in the first three months of 2011, including investments in order-fulfillment centers and new technologies.

"We're just seeing tremendous growth, and because of that we're having to invest in a lot of capacity," he said on a conference call with reporters. He added that Amazon's international sales took a hit from the deadly earthquake and tsunami in Japan on March 11.

While Amazon's earnings fell short of investors' expectations, the Seattle-based company's overall revenue was stronger than expected in the first quarter, as was its revenue forecast for the second quarter.

Net income of $201 million, or 44 cents per share, down from $299 million, or 66 cents per share, a year ago. The earnings were well short of the 61 cents per share that analysts polled by FactSet expected.

Revenue rose 38 percent to $9.86 billion, ahead of the $9.54 billion that analysts were forecasting, and up from $7.13 billion a year ago.

For the second quarter, Amazon says it expects revenue of $8.85 billion to $9.65 billion. Analysts were expecting $8.75 billion.

The net loss was $318 million, or 38 cents a share, including a gain related to fuel hedges. That compares with the 50-cent average loss estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Revenue rose 13 percent to $7.75 billion, the Atlanta-based company said Tuesday.

Delta and other U.S. carriers raised ticket prices six times last quarter to mitigate a 41 percent jump in jet-fuel prices from a year earlier. Delta is retiring some of its oldest and least-efficient planes and cutting capacity after the peak summer travel season to further lower costs.

The carrier has also trimmed its capital spending budget for the year by $300 million, to $1.2 billion, and it plans to reduce capacity by 4 percentage points in the second half of the year by cutting flights in markets where fares aren't covering fuel costs.