DEARBORN, Mich. - Ford Motor Credit Co. reported net income of $528 million in the first quarter of 2010, an improvement of $541 million from a net loss of $13 million a year earlier. On a pre-tax basis, Ford Credit earned $828 million in the first quarter, compared with a loss of $36 million in the previous year.

The improvement in pre-tax earnings primarily reflected lower depreciation expense for leased vehicles due to higher auction values and a lower provision for credit losses, offset partially by lower volume.

"Ford Credit had strong first quarter results, in part due to improvements in the used-vehicle auction markets," said Mike Bannister, chairman and CEO. "Economic conditions are still uncertain and, as always, we will utilize the solid business practices and superior servicing that remain the foundations of our company."

On March 31, Ford Credit's on-balance sheet net receivables totaled $88 billion, compared with $93 billion at year-end 2009. Managed receivables were $90 billion on March 31, down from $95 billion on December 31, 2009.

The lower receivables primarily reflected the transition of Jaguar, Land Rover, Mazda and Volvo financing to other finance providers and lower industry and financing volumes in 2009 and 2010 compared with prior years.

Ford Credit now expects 2010 profits to be about the same as its 2009 profits. The recent improvements in used-vehicle auction values and credit loss performance are expected to offset the effects of lower average receivables and the non-recurrence of certain favorable 2009 factors.