Skoda Auto raises H1 operating profit by 68 pct to Kc5.7bn

Sales grew by more than one-fifth to Kc109.7bn.

Skoda sold 298,200 cars in January-June, a growth of 13.6 percent year-on-year.

Profit at the largest car maker in the Czech Republic increased thanks to a higher number of sold cars as well as lower costs and more favourable exchange rates.

Skoda's parent company Volkswagen said this morning the Czech car maker had made operating profit of EUR227m (about Kc5.7bn) in the first half, a growth of around 68 percent year-on-year.

But Skoda said the Czech data are more precise because of changes in exchange rates, for example.

The good result reported for the number of sold cars in the first half of 2010 was on one hand due to the development of the overall market which was mostly positive, Skoda board of directors chairman Reinhard Jung said.

On the other hand, a widened model range of the Skoda make also led to acquiring bigger market shares, Jung said.

For the second half, it is, however, necessary to reckon with a more modest development owing to the waning effect of state subsidies and economic uncertainty on many markets, he added.

Skoda board of directors member Reinhard Fleger said earlier the brand benefits mainly from good demand in China as well as on many markets in Western and Eastern Europe.

In some countries, the car market is still very unstable after the difficult year 2009, and the second half of 2010 will therefore present big challenges, Fleger said in mid-July.

Skoda sales in Western Europe, excluding Germany, rose by 34.5 percent to 117,300 cars. In contrast, sales in Germany dropped by 33.8 percent to 58,000 vehicles, as expected.

Sales in the Czech Republic grew by 16.6 percent to 30,400 cars. The company registered the biggest growth in demand for model lines Superb, Yeti and Octavia.

Sales developed favourably above all in June when 71,320 clients bought a Skoda car, a year-on-year rise of 8.3 percent. In Russia, for example, sales of Skoda models doubled compared with June 2009.

Volkswagen generated operating profit of EUR2.8bn in the first half of the year, a growth of around 133 percent on the year. Sales rose by 21 percent to EUR61.8bn in the period.

Author: ČTK
www.ctk.cz