Ford cuts American truck production

Ford Motor Co. is cutting North American production of pickups and SUVs as car buyers eyeing record gas prices turn toward more fuel-efficient models. The automaker says it no longer expects to return to profitability by 2009. Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford also on Thursday cut back its projections for total U.S. sales in 2008 to between 15 million and 15.4 million vehicles, down from 17 million vehicles as recently as 2005. "Unless there is a fairly rapid turnaround in U.S. business conditions, which we are not anticipating, it now looks like it will take longer than expected to achieve our North American automotive profitability goal," Ford President and Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally said in a statement. Its shares sank 64 cents, or 8.2 percent, to $7.16 in Thursday trading.