Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft recorded a satisfactory overall performance in a challenging market environment in the first quarter of 2013. Sales revenue remained largely stable in the first three months of the year at €46.6 billion (January – March 2012: €47.3 billion). Operating profit amounts to €2.3 billion (previous year: €3.2 billion), negatively impacted by contingency reserves in the areas of Passenger Cars and Power Engineering, among other things. Profit before tax was €2.7 billion (previous year: €4.2 billion). The prior-year figure had been positively influenced by the remeasurement of the options related to Porsche. At €10.6 billion, net liquidity in the Automotive Division remained at a high level, safeguarding the Volkswagen Group’s financial stability and flexibility.
“As expected, business in the first quarter was dominated by the difficult economic environment. The markets were sluggish, especially in Europe, and not least in Germany. But we remain confident overall that we can pick up speed over the rest of the year”, said Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft, in Wolfsburg on Wednesday. “Despite all the economic uncertainties, the Volkswagen Group is standing by its goals for 2013”, he stressed.
Ad hoc release
Interim Report January-March 2013:
– Volkswagen Group increases deliveries to customers by 4.8 percent year-on-year to 2.3 million vehicles; strong growth in China
– Demand for Group vehicles outperforms the market as a whole worldwide; share of the passenger car market rises to 12.6 percent (12.2 percent)
– Group sales revenue on a level with the previous year at EUR 46.6 billion (EUR 47.3 billion); negative effects from declining European markets
– Operating profit of EUR 2.3 billion (EUR 3.2 billion) in a difficult market environment; impacted by contingency reserves affecting the areas of Passenger Cars and Power Engineering
– Earnings before tax of EUR 2.7 billion (EUR 4.2 billion); prior-year figure lifted by remeasurement of Porsche options
– At EUR 3.5 billion (EUR 2.9 billion), cash flows from operating activities in the Automotive Division higher than in the previous year; ratio of investments in property, plant and equipment (capex) to sales revenue is 4.1 percent (4.0 percent)
– Net liquidity of EUR 10.6 billion in the Automotive Division safeguards financial stability and flexibility; liquidity in the Automotive Division reduced by measures to strengthen the Financial Services Division’s equity
Prospects for 2013:
In 2013, the Volkswagen Group’s brands will launch a large number of fascinating new models and so help further expand our strong position in the global markets.
We expect that the Volkswagen Group will outperform the market as a whole in a challenging environment and that deliveries to customers will increase year-on-year. However, we are not completely immune to the intense competition and the impact this has on business. The modular toolkit system, which is being continuously expanded, will have an increasingly positive effect on the Group’s cost structure.
We expect the Volkswagen Group’s 2013 sales revenue to exceed the prior-year figure. Given the ongoing uncertainty in the economic environment, the Group’s goal for operating profit is to match the prior-year level in 2013. This applies equally to the Passenger Cars Business Area, the Commercial Vehicles, Power Engineering Business Area – which remains affected by high write-downs relating to purchase price allocation, among other things – and the Financial Services Division. While we shall see positive effects from our attractive model range and strong market position, there will also be increasingly stiff competition in a challenging market environment. Disciplined cost and investment management and the continuous optimization of our processes remain integral parts of our Strategy 2018.