STUTTGART, Germany: Germany’s three largest carmakers continued to lose ground to international rivals in the first half of the year, according to an analysis by consultancy EY, reported German Press Agency (dpa).
The combined revenue of Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and BMW fell to around €284 billion (USD325 billion), a 2.9 per cent decrease from the previous year, EY said.
By comparison, the 19 other international automotive groups examined by EY increased their combined revenue by 3.6 per cent to just under €1.048 trillion (USD1.203 trillion).
According to the data, this marks the third consecutive first-half revenue decline for the German manufacturers.
The lag becomes even more apparent in the corporate ranking: according to EY, 15 carmakers recorded revenue increases, while the three German groups occupied places 16, 17 and 19.
Tesla achieved the strongest growth, followed by Suzuki and Geely.
The weakness of the German automotive industry is also reflected in profits: earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of the German carmakers fell by 19 per cent to €13 billion (USD15 billion) in the first half of the year.
In absolute terms, VW, Mercedes-Benz and BMW remained well ahead of manufacturers from other countries.
However, according to the analysis, this was the lowest figure since the pandemic year of 2020. Performance also declined among manufacturers from China (minus 21.9 per cent) and Japan (minus 36.5 per cent).
Meanwhile, US manufacturers Ford, General Motors and Tesla recorded growth of 32.9 per cent. – BERNAMA-dpa
