Things are looking up at Chrysler. The smallest of the American Big Three has announced that it managed to turn out a modified operating profit of $198 million for the fourth quarter of 2010. That number gave the Pentastar a modified operating profit of $763 million for the full year, even while fielding a net loss of $652 million in 2010. Modified operating profit excludes taxes, interest and pension costs.

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During the fourth quarter, Chrysler saw a net loss of $199 million – the largest of the year. Even so, Chrysler says that it expects good things from 2011. The automaker has made it clear that it plans to see significantly improved figures in coming months. With an arsenal of new and refreshed models in showrooms right now and an improved buying forecast here in the states, Chrysler expects to see net profits of $200-500 million for 2011 and total revenues in the area of $55 billion.

According to Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne, the automaker has been unable to post a net profit thus far due to high interest payments on federal loans. Throughout last year, the company paid a total of $1.3 billion in interest, according to Automotive News.