GM profit falls 41 percent

DETROIT (AP) - General Motors said Thursday that its second-quarter profit fell 41 percent as losses in Europe and South America cut into strong North American earnings.

The company earned $1.5 billion from April through June, $1 billion less than its $2.5 billion net income a year earlier.

GM earned 90 cents per share compared with $1.54 a year earlier. Revenue fell 5 percent to $37.6 billion.

The company beat Wall Street expectations. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of 75 cents per share.

GM lost $361 million before taxes in Europe, compared with a $102 million profit a year earlier. Even North America showed a little weakness. Pretax profits fell nearly 13 percent to about $2 billion.