The Stuttgart carmaker is struggling with difficult market conditions. But declining sales figures, the lack of semiconductors or rising costs cannot spoil the business.
The car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz sold significantly fewer cars in the first quarter of the year than in the previous year and was still able to increase its sales and earnings sharply.
“We are very satisfied with the results in the first quarter,” said CFO Harald Wilhelm on Wednesday.
As the company announced in Stuttgart, sales in the first quarter increased by six percent to 34.9 billion euros compared to the same period last year. Adjusted for special effects, earnings before interest and taxes rose by 19 percent to 5.3 billion euros. The bottom line was a profit of 3.5 billion euros.
“Demand for all of our products in all markets is very strong and continues to be very high,” said Wilhelm. It is very important to him to point out that the decline in sales is solely due to the ongoing shortage of semiconductors. The high demand coupled with limited availability and rising costs for manufacturers have led to higher prices for several quarters.
Not just “funny raise prices”
It’s not the case that you just sit there and merrily raise the prices, says Wilhelm. The substance of the product is central. His company has very attractive cars for whose substance customers are willing to pay these prices. For the remainder of the financial year, he assumes that the costs for raw materials and energy will continue to rise. “We want to counter that on the price side,” said Wilhelm.
The CFO pointed out that although car sales had fallen by ten percent, sales in the so-called top-end segment had risen by five percent. These include the luxury brand Maybach, the tuned sports models from AMG and the G and S classes. Sales of all-electric vehicles and plug-in cars even rose by 19 percent.
“It was a challenging start to the year due to the war in Ukraine,” said Wilhelm. The further consequences of the rapidly changing situation in Russia and Ukraine are currently not foreseeable, it said in a statement. “An escalation beyond the current status could have significant negative consequences for the business activities of Mercedes-Benz,” it said. Despite the difficult conditions, the Stuttgart car manufacturer is sticking to its goal of achieving a slight increase in sales this year.
Source: Stern
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
