Porsche's operating profit drops 91% in second quarter

STUTTGART: Porsche's operating profit from its core car business – excluding financial services – collapsed to just €154 million (RM891.4mil) in the second quarter.

That is down from around €1.7 billion (RM8.42bil) in the same period last year, amounting to a fall of nearly 91%.

Revenue for the brand fell by roughly 12.9% to just over €8.3 billion (RM41.1bil), according to half-year figures published on Friday by the Volkswagen Group (VW), which holds a majority stake in the German sports car manufacturer.

By comparison, VW's namesake passenger car brand earned an operating profit of €991 million (RM4.9bil) between April and June - almost six times more than during the weak second quarter a year ago.

That result far outpaced Porsche and fellow VW group brand Audi combined, highlighting a shift in performance dynamics within the group.

The exact reasons for the poor second-quarter performance were not given by the company.

A Porsche spokesman declined to comment on the figures.

The company will present more detailed financial figures from the second quarter on Wednesday.

In recent years, Porsche had been a major profit engine for the Volkswagen Group, contributing a disproportionately large share of earnings despite relatively modest sales volumes.

But Porsche is currently grappling with several headwinds, particularly regarding China, where sales have slumped significantly.