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According to CEO Herbert Diess, Volkswagen wants to "remain profitable in the sum of all business units ... and achieve a positive operating result in 2020 ..."
Photo: Julian Stratenschulte / DPA
After the massive drop in sales in recent months, Volkswagen sees light at the end of the tunnel and confirms its forecast of an operating profit.
In September, the group expects incoming orders and deliveries to be higher than the previous year and
assume
that the upward trend will continue for the rest of the year, said CEO
Herbert Diess
(61) according to the speech manuscript at the virtual general meeting.
Accordingly, Volkswagen confirms its goal of "remaining profitable in all parts of the business and achieving a positive operating result in 2020".
The group also reaffirmed its investments in the future.
As is known, 33 billion euros are to flow into the expansion of e-mobility by 2024.
VW wants to become the market leader in battery-powered vehicles.
All medium and long-term forecasts are still associated with considerable uncertainties and depend on the further course of the pandemic, added Diess.
The preferred shares of Volkswagen listed in the Dax were around half a percent lighter in the morning.
No dividend increase, sales and profits will fall in 2020
According to the forecast last reaffirmed in the middle of the year, the Wolfsburg-based company is expecting sales for the full year to be significantly below the previous year's level.
In terms of operating profit, management assumes a "serious decline" compared to the previous year.
In the first half of the year, Volkswagen drove deep into the red due to the production shutdown forced by the pandemic.
The bottom line was a loss of just over a billion euros after a profit of around 7.2 billion in the same period last year.
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The group withdrew its proposal to pay a significantly higher dividend for the record year 2019 due to the consequences of the Corona crisis.
As in the previous year, the shareholders are now to be paid EUR 4.80 per ordinary share and EUR 4.86 per preference share.
At the beginning of his speech to the shareholders, Diess emphasized that the waiver of the increase was not based on a lack of financial robustness of the group, but took into account the massive effects that the pandemic would have on the company.
Already 30,000 orders for the ID.3
Diess emphasized the importance of digital change for the industry and the group.
The change in drive technology is the easier way that traditional car manufacturers have to tackle.
"It will be much more far-reaching for the car to develop into a fully networked mobility device in the next ten years," said Diess.
VW must be able to offer not only the transport cover, but also the brain that safely controls the vehicle with artificial intelligence.
In order to achieve this, the company must transform itself into a digital company.
With a view to the VW future and the achievement of the Paris climate goals, the start of the new VW hopeful ID.3 is essential, the manager said.
There are now over 30,000 orders for the fully electric car.
Diess expects a lot from the Group's growing range of e-vehicles, which includes another model of the ID family with the compact sports off-road vehicle ID.4 presented last week.
Half a million vehicles are expected to be sold by 2025.
CO2 targets, this does not exclude fines
From Diess' point of view, VW is better prepared than the competition for the foreseeable tightening of the CO2 fleet targets.
However, he also did not rule out that Volkswagen will not achieve the statutory CO2 targets and then have to pay a fine.
Diess said it was essential for the group to achieve the goals.
The topic is discussed in the board almost every week.
The company has a chance to avoid the fines.
But it will certainly be "a very strenuous program until the end of the year.
rei / day / Reuters / dpa
