Volkswagen

Group CEO Oliver Blume is sticking to the target of selling around nine million vehicles in 2030 and achieving an operating margin of nine percent despite the crisis and announced cuts of more than 100,000 jobs. Blume defended the personnel measures and announced severance agreements as well as billion-euro investments. Volkswagen is currently suffering from a slump in China and reported a third-quarter loss of €5.82 billion on falling revenue. » Mere på welt.de

A study by the Center of Automotive Management shows that special charges of €8.7 billion effectively push VW’s result down to zero, leaving group profit at just twelve euros per vehicle. Adjusted, the margin is 3.8 percent, which the study says signals that VW must further improve cost structures and earnings power to remain competitive over the long term. Industry-wide profits are declining: average profit per car fell to €1,363, while manufacturers such as Mercedes and BMW report significantly higher profit per vehicle. » Mere på spiegel.de

A study by the Center of Automotive Management (CAM) shows that Volkswagen nominally earns just 12 euros profit per car sold; one-off effects of 8.7 billion euros weighed on the result. Adjusted, the margin is 3.8 percent, meaning VW still needs to improve its cost base and earning power. Across the industry, profit per car is 1,363 euros; Mercedes raised profit per car to 4,198 euros, while many competitors are also under pressure. » Mere på welt.de

In Emden Volkswagen has begun series production of the ID. Tiguan; the electric model replaces the ID.4/ID.5 and is intended to secure sales in the high-volume SUV segment. Several thousand pre-orders have been placed, and the first deliveries are scheduled for early 2027. The start of production comes at a time of great uncertainty: the plant is at risk from 2031 in the wake of intensified cost-cutting and due to overcapacity within the group. Experts see the ID. Tiguan as offering opportunities to improve plant utilization and reduce unit costs, but a sustainable preservation of the site remains uncertain and will likely depend on decisions expected by mid-2027. » Mere på n-tv.de

Volkswagen's board has halted the gigacasting project "Gamechanger" just before the groundbreaking. The planned large casting center in Wolfsburg was supposed to produce bodies much more cheaply and cut production costs significantly — a technology already widely used by Chinese manufacturers. The decision is seen as a setback for manufacturing leadership and endangers long-term competitiveness, the Wolfsburg location and jobs. It remains unclear whether Volkswagen will instead deploy the technology outside Europe, for example at the Audi plant in Georgia. » Mere på wiwo.de