VW-owned Skoda has hit record deliveries – for any quarter – in the first quarter. It will be welcome news for parent VW Group, which is under pressure due to the ‘dieselgate’ scandal and falling share for the Volkswagen brand in some markets.
The Skoda brand delivered 276,600 vehicles to customers (up 4.3%) in Q1 for a 6.4% sales revenue increase to EUR3.4bn. Skoda said operating profit increased 30.2% to EUR315m and that the flagship Superb was a strong seller.
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“Skoda has made an excellent start to the year,” says Skoda CEO Bernhard Maier. “We have seamlessly continued the success of last year into the first quarter of 2016. We owe this especially to our strong model range, with the new Superb as an additional driving force. The encouraging sales figures and strong financial results of the first quarter provide a solid foundation for further profitable growth. Our next model campaign begins with the upcoming launch of the new Skoda Kodiaq.”
Operating margin rose to 9.3% after 7.6% in the first quarter of the previous year. The higher profitability was primarily due to positive mix effects and better product costs, Skoda said.
“Thanks to this strong first quarter, Skoda’s profitable growth has continued and the company has again confirmed its financial strength and profitability,” said Skoda CFO Winfried Krause. “Although the economic conditions remain challenging and the situation in some markets is difficult, we can build on our financial strength,” he added.
