Ford Motor Co. warned of tough price competition and harder-to-reach profit targets at an analyst meeting Wednesday, a sign that the company and the auto industry face a tougher road after four years of robust recovery from the recession. Ford said its pretax profit next year would drop as much as $1.5 billion below a near-record level of $8.5 billion in 2013. It will have to slow price increases in North America — or even boost discounts on some models — and its costs will rise because of an ambitious launch of almost two dozen vehicles worldwide.
Ford warns profits may fall next year
