Audi continues to electrify the Chinese market will play a decisive role
On the morning of March 18, local time in Germany, Audi disclosed its 2020 financial report through online publication. In 2020, the number of Audi brand new cars delivered was 1,692,773, a year-on-year decrease of about 8%. The Audi Group’s total sales revenue for fiscal year 2020 is approximately 49.973 billion euros. Excluding special items, operating sales profit was 2.739 billion euros and operating sales profit margin was 5.5%.
Dusman, Chairman of the Board of Management of Audi Automotive AG
'Audi has dealt with last year's challenges tenaciously and has taken all necessary measures to become stronger in the crisis,' said Dussmann, Chairman of the Board of Management of Audi Automotive AG. 'The global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic The epidemic has had an important impact on our business throughout the year. At the beginning, global automotive demand dropped sharply. Later last year, the market gradually recovered stability. The recovery first appeared in China, then Europe and the United States. In the fourth quarter, we Reached record sales, and it was also the best sales quarter in Audi history.'
Compared with the previous year, the Audi Group’s financial performance in 2020 has increased to 1.618 billion euros. The main reason is the good performance of the Audi brand in the Chinese market. Since March 2020, the Chinese market has shown signs of recovery. Beginning in April, the sales of the Audi brand in the Chinese market have hit a new monthly high. Despite the overall market decline, in the past year, the cumulative delivery volume of the Audi brand in the Chinese market still increased by 5.4% year-on-year. In addition, the transfer of Audi Electronics Venture GmbH within the Volkswagen Group also had a positive impact of 589 million euros on financial performance.
The successful implementation of Audi's transformation plan has also made a positive contribution to financial development. The Audi transformation plan has brought about a positive effect of 2.6 billion euros, which to a large extent has a positive effect on operating sales profits. Since its launch two years ago, this efficiency improvement plan has released 7 billion euros of financial space for Audi; by 2022, it will bring about 15 billion euros of financial effects to the company. As the epidemic has affected product sales, the realization of the plan may be slightly delayed. The 'Audi Future' plan has made a significant contribution to the company's successful development by reducing employment costs.
Anno, Financial and Legal Director of the Board of Management of Audi Automotive Co., Ltd.
Anno, Director of Finance and Legal Affairs of the Board of Management of Audi Automotive AG, said, “The'Audi Transformation Plan' and the'Audi Future' Plan have been successfully implemented. Both projects have made important contributions to the performance of the Audi Group. Contributions enable us to continue to invest in the electrification and digitization of products.'
Audi’s business and strategic guidelines are intensively reflected in the investment plan for the next five years-about half of the investment plan totaling 35 billion euros will be invested in future technology, including electrification and hybrid The investment will reach approximately 15 billion euros.
In the implementation of Audi's electrification strategy, the Chinese market will play a decisive role. Audi is further deepening its investment in China and making targeted adjustments to its business model. One of the important milestones is the new Audi FAW New Energy Vehicle Company established by Audi and its long-term partner China FAW. Starting in 2024, the company will start production of Audi pure electric models based on the PPE platform developed in cooperation with Porsche in Changchun. 'China is driving technological development, and it is also an important pillar for Audi's long-term success in the future,' Dussmann said. 'Especially in the high-end car field, we see the huge potential of the Chinese market. Therefore, we will continue to strengthen our position in this Audi largest The market’s product mix.” By the end of 2021, Audi will realize the domestic production of 12 models through the joint venture FAW-Volkswagen.
Looking forward to 2021, for the first time in history, more than half of Audi’s new models will have electric versions. In February, the world premiere of Audi e-tron GT models; in the middle of this year, Audi Q4 e-tron and Audi Q4 e-tron Sportback will also be ready to go. In addition, half of the fuel models launched this year will have plug-in hybrid versions. Audi plans to provide more than 20 all-electric models by 2025 and significantly expand its plug-in hybrid product portfolio. Audi predicts that by 2025, about one-third of the cars delivered to customers worldwide will be pure electric or hybrid models.
The Audi Group predicts that the global economy will recover in 2021, but it will still face the follow-up impact of the epidemic. “We look forward to 2021 with a cautious and optimistic attitude,” Anno said. “We hope to continue the strong momentum in the fourth quarter of last year. Our advanced goal for this year is to achieve substantial growth compared to last year.” In 2021, Audi plans to achieve 7 %-9% operating sales profit margin, close to the strategic target range of 9%-11%.
