Audi achieves record Q1 profit despite fall in deliveries

Audi suffered a sharp drop in sales in the first quarter but the German carmaker still posted a record result for the first three months of the year, reported dpa.

Several special effects items contributed to after-tax profit doubling to €2.9 billion ($3.07 billion), the group reported on Thursday, the highest figure it has ever reported in a first quarter.

Ingolstadt-based Audi also benefited from valuation effects on commodity hedging transactions, which brought in €1.2 billion.

In addition, the Bentley brand was consolidated under the Audi Group umbrella for the first time. It is the fourth brand alongside Audi, Lamborghini and Ducati.

The carmaker described its overall situation as positive, despite ongoing bottlenecks in semiconductor supplies, the war in Ukraine, and renewed coronavirus lockdowns in China.

For example, the worldwide shortage of new vehicles means that Audi has to discount its cars "significantly" less than would be otherwise, Chief Financial Officer Jürgen Rittersberger said.

The market environment is "excellent," he said.

In addition, Audi is increasingly building higher-value and more profitable cars. That also explains - along with the first-time consolidation of Bentley - why revenue rose 2% to €14.3 billion, even though deliveries at the group level fell 16% compared with the same quarter last year.

For the full year, Audi aims to deliver 1.8 billion to 1.9 million cars at group level and generate between €62 billion and €65 billion in sales.

The company, which is part of the larger Volkswagen Group, confirmed its forecast "despite geopolitical uncertainties from the ongoing Ukraine war and the tense supply situation."