Fiat changes its name

Italian car giant Fiat announced Wednesday it was changing its name after completing the purchase of US automaker Chrysler to "Fiat Chrysler Automobiles" and would list its shares in New York and Milan.

- In order to establish a true peer to the major global automotive groups, in both scale and capital market appeal, the Board has decided to establish Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V., organized in the Netherlands, as the parent company of the Group - the AFP cited the group as saying in a statement.

Fiat chairman John Elkann said the name change heralded "a new chapter".

- A journey that started over a decade ago, as Fiat sought to ensure its place in an increasingly complex marketplace, has brought together two organizations each with a great history in the automotive industry and different but complementary geographic strengths - he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Fiat reported 2013 results which were below analysts expectations and said it would be waiving dividends, causing shares in the group to plummet.

Fiat blamed in part the profit drop on conditions in Latin America, which it said was due primarily to "input cost inflation, unfavorable production mix and lower result in Venezuela."

The Italian automaker completed its acquisition of Chrysler this week in a $4.35-billion transaction after a five-year merger that creates a new global car giant. The deal involved buying the remaining 41.46 percent stake in Chrysler not held by Fiat from Veba, a fund controlled by the US autoworkers' union UAW.

Fiat and Chrysler together make the world's seventh biggest auto group.