The company made a robust start to the second quarter, explained CFO Lutz Meschke at the virtual Annual General Meeting on Friday. Demand is pleasing in almost all regions, he said, only in China is demand for exclusive products, including vehicles, restrained across all markets. "We expect this to be the case for China in particular: It will remain extremely challenging for the time being," said CEO Oliver Blume.
In addition to high costs for new models, a slump in sales in China was the main reason for a 30 percent drop in operating profit in the first quarter. However, Porsche's management expects a better development in the course of the year and has therefore confirmed its forecast for the year. This envisages sales of 40 to 42 billion euros and a return on sales of 15 to 17 percent.
(Report by Ilona Wissenbach, edited by Ralf Banser. If you have any queries, please contact the editorial team at frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com)
