Ford Reports a $3 Billion Quarterly Profit A Ford assembly line in Cologne, Germany, making Fiestas. Ford said investments in Europe contributed to higher profit in the fourth quarter. Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters DETROIT - Ford Motor, the nation's second-largest automaker, said on Tuesday that its fourth-quarter earnings rose 90 percent, to $3 billion, mostly because of favorable tax benefits related to investments in its European operations. Ford said pretax profit fell to $1.28 billion from $1.68 billion in the period a year earlier. But the company said it benefited from $2.1 billion in special tax gains during the quarter, including an increase in deferred tax assets in Europe. The lower pretax earnings for the quarter reflected slimmer operating margins in the intensely competitive North American vehicle market and losses in its European and South American operations. For the full year of 2013, Ford reported net income of $7.16 billion, about a 26 percent increase from the previous year. Ford's chief executive, Alan R. Mulally, called the yearly performance outstanding, and said the automaker expected strong results in 2014 as it adds several new products. "We are well positioned for another solid year in 2014, as we continue to serve our customers in all markets around the world with a full family of vehicles," Mr. Mulally said in a statement. Ford is second in size among domestic carmakers, behind General Motors. The company has consistently posted strong results in its core North American business, particularly in the surging market for new vehicles in the United States. But increased competition and costs associated with new-vehicle introductions curtailed its fourth-quarter performance in its home market. Ford reported fourth-quarter pretax profit in North America of $1.7 billion, down from $1.87 billion in the same period in 2012. For the full year, Ford achieved pretax profit of $8.78 billion in North America, a 5 percent improvement over the previous year. The North American results will directly benefit Ford's 47,000 union workers in the United States. The company said that under its contract with the United Auto Workers, each of its hourly workers would receive about $8,800 in profit-sharing payments. Ford's international operations had their difficulties in the fourth quarter. In Europe, Ford reported a pretax loss of $571 million, which was an improvement over the $732 million loss it posted in the quarter the year before. The company is reducing employment and factory production in Europe, mostly because of slower industrywide sales on the Continent. Ford on Tuesday reiterated its goal of being profitable in Europe by 2015. In South America, Ford said it had a pretax loss of $126 million during the quarter, compared with a $145 million profit in the period a year earlier. Its revenue fell, mostly because of lower volumes in Brazil and Venezuela. The bright spot in international operations was the Asia-Pacific region, where Ford has been investing heavily in new plants to catch up to rival carmakers. Ford posted pretax profit of $106 million in the region for the fourth quarter, compared with a $39 million profit in the fourth quarter in 2012.