German auto giant Volkswagen AG's (VLKAF.PK, VKW.L) posted 26% lower first-quarter operating profit of 2.34 billion euros, versus 3.17 billion euros last year, impacted by contingency reserves affecting the areas of Passenger Cars and Power Engineering. Profit after tax slipped 38.2% year-on-year to 1.95 billion euros, from 3.15 billion euros.
Pre-tax profit for the three-month period of 2.69 billion euros, was significantly lower than the prior year's 4.25 billion euros.
Sales revenue for the quarter totaled 46.57 billion euros, down 1.6% from 47.33 billion euros a year back. The Group increased its deliveries to customers by 4.8 percent year-on-year to 2.3 million vehicles, with strong growth in China.
For 2013, Volkswagen Group's sales revenue are expected to exceed the prior-year figure. Given the ongoing uncertainty in the economic environment, the Group's goal for operating profit for the year is to match the last year level.
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