Audi warns of ‘challenging road ahead’ as half-year figures stabilise

Audi’s financial performance ‘stabilised’ during the second quarter of 2024, though the brand has warned that a ‘challenging road’ still lies ahead.

During the first half of the year, Audi delivered 843,991 across Audi, Bentley and Lamborghini brands – a fall of 8.2 per cent on the year prior – though it did increase deliveries in the second quarter by 10 per cent compared with the first quarter of the year.

Audi cites ‘supply bottlenecks and various model changes’ as reasons behind the decline in half-year deliveries, though the number of electric vehicles it produced increased by 1.3 per cent in the first half of the year to 76,657 vehicles. Demand for plug-in hybrids also swelled by 61 per cent year-on-year.

Audi states that within Europe it is experiencing ‘stable’ demand for its electric vehicles, with its 48,332 delivered vehicles 1.7 per cent down on the previous year’s figure. However, demand for electric Audi models in America has continued to increase, with the 11,121 electric vehicles delivered during the first half of the year representing a 10.2 per cent increase on the same period last year.

Overall, revenue decreased by 9.5 per cent to €30,939 million (£26,045 million) while operating profit stood at €1,982 (£1,668 million) down from €3,417 (£2,867 million) in the first six months of the year. Profit after tax fell to €2,154 million (£1,814 million) from €3,262 (£2,747 million).

Jürgen Rittersberger, Audi CFO, said: “Audi is working resolutely on its financial performance.

“We are in a year of transition. We improved in the second quarter but still have a challenging road ahead. With our Performance Program 14, we are increasing our efficiency and consistently tapping into cost and revenue potential. At the same time, our company is launching numerous new models.”