Ford Earnings 23% Below ’84

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. today reported its second-quarter earnings were 23% below those a year earlier, but it was still the best performance in a depressed year for the three major U.S. auto makers.

Ford’s net income totaled $698.7 million, or $3.75 per share of common stock, compared with $909.1 million, or $4.95 per share, in the second quarter of 1984. General Motors Corp. earlier in the week reported its second-quarter earnings were down 28%, and Chrysler Corp. earnings were 25% lower than the year before.