Goodyear racks up another loss

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. reported a net loss of $174 million (96 cnets a share) for its first quarter, compared with a $74 million profit a year earlier. Net sales were up 1 percent to $4.5 billion.

The Akron tire company went through a long strike at the end of last year in its North American factories. North American sales were still down this quarter — off 10 percent. But Goodyear is making bigger profits than expected as a result of increased sales to the replacement market, so it has lowered its estimate of the full impact of that strike: $100 million to $120 million for the full year, down from a previous estimate about twice as high.

In a conference call with analysts, Chairman Robert Keegan said the company would close more plants and cut more jobs, but he didn't provide specifics. The new cuts will come on top of others already made or announced as Goodyear slashes costs.