VW Group profit falls by 41 percent in the first quarter

Wolfsburg. Following a weak previous year, Volkswagen has also started 2025 with a slump in profits. The bottom line is that Europe's largest automaker's profit fell by almost 41 percent year-on-year to €2.19 billion in the first quarter, the Wolfsburg-based company announced.

In addition to the already known billion-euro special charges, the Group's earnings in the important Chinese market with its joint ventures there again had a negative impact. VW incurred a higher loss with its battery business. Conversely, Group sales increased by almost 3 percent to €77.6 billion.

Volkswagen had already presented preliminary figures for its day-to-day operations. Special issues such as CO2 provisions in Europe, the restructuring of its software subsidiary Cariad, and provisions for the diesel scandal resulted in extraordinary costs of approximately €1.1 billion, causing operating profit to plummet by around 37 percent to €2.9 billion.

The group confirmed its annual forecast – however, it still does not include any tariff effects from US President Donald Trump's trade policy.

"As expected, the Volkswagen Group started the fiscal year with mixed results," said Arno Antlitz, Chief Financial Officer of the Volkswagen Group, according to the statement. "Our cars are being very well received by our customers. Order intake in Western Europe has increased significantly, and our order books are filling up rapidly." Sales of electric cars have increased significantly in Western Europe.

"Precisely because the global economic environment is currently so uncertain, we must focus on the things we can influence ourselves," said Antlitz. "That means: In addition to our strong vehicle offering, we must ensure a competitive cost structure so that we can remain successful even in a rapidly changing world."

RND/dpa