CHICAGO, Oct. 30 (Xinhua) -- The six-week strike by the United Automobile Workers (UAW) against General Motors (GM) will reduce the automaker's earnings this year by almost 3 billion U.S. dollars, according to a report by The Detroit News.
The first two weeks of the strike will cost GM 1 billion dollars in earning losses in the third quarter. The overall losses from the six-week walkout will rise to nearly 3 billion dollars for the year, said the report on Tuesday.
Nearly 48,000 GM workers went on strike starting Sept. 16, two weeks before the end of the quarter. It ended on Oct. 26, marking the longest strike against the automaker since 1970. GM resumed production this week.
"Our new labor agreement maintains our competitiveness, preserves our operating flexibility and allows us to continue improving our quality and productivity," said GM CEO Mary Barra.
As a result of the strike, GM expected its full-year adjusted earnings per share between 4.50 dollars and 4.80 dollars, down from its previous forecast of 6.50 dollars to 7 dollars.
GM also trimmed its full-year adjusted free cash flow to 1 billion dollars or less because of the strike, a significant drop from its previous estimate of 6 billion dollars.
