Chris Bryant, Columnist

Ford Can Learn from Fiat's Love-in

Capital allocation and communication have been critical to Marchionne's success.

January 26, 2018 at 10:27 AM UTC

Chris Bryant is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering industrial companies in Europe. Previously, he was a reporter for the Financial Times.

Inside The 2018 North American International Auto Show — Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

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With retirement approaching, Sergio Marchionne seems determined to go out with a bang: the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV boss thinks operating profit will surpass that of Ford Motor Co. this year.

On Thursday, Marchionne reminded analysts that's a surprising turn of events. He's right. It's less than a decade since Chrysler filed for bankruptcy protection (Ford didn't need a bailout) and, in some respects, Fiat Chrysler remains the inferior business. Its automotive unit is still debt-laden and pays no dividend.