Porsche News
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Porsche may have gotten in over its head when it tried to take over Volkswagen outright, but that doesn't mean the German automaker is struggling to sell premium sports cars.
The Stuttgart-based automaker is planning on selling 80,000 units in 2009 at an astounding profit margin of 12%. That's £600 million and more profit than most automakers several times its size will likely achieve during the global economic downturn.
Claus Schmiedel, a member of parliament in Porsche's home state Baden-Wuerttemberg, told Stuttgarter Nachrichten in an interview to be published on Saturday he had spoken to Porsche's finance chief and taken a look at the carmaker's books.
"On an operating level Porsche does not have a problem -- unlike other producers," Schmiedel said, adding the company will achieve an operating margin of 12 percent.
In the following year Porsche aims to sell more than 100,000 cars and again make a profit of more than 1 billion euros, Schmiedel said.
Porsche, whose fiscal year ends July 31, declined to comment.
The news of Porsche's healthy booty comes as a bit of a surprise considering its flirtation with bankruptcy back in March. Porsche has 9 billion euros in debt hanging over its head, though it told Reuters it can cope with the red ink.
Porsche had to borrow 700 million euro from Volkswagen to get itself out of an earlier jam, and it's now discussing a merger with Europe's largest volume automaker.
All in all not too shabby for an automaker pushed to the brink of insolvency.
The Stuttgart-based automaker is planning on selling 80,000 units in 2009 at an astounding profit margin of 12%. That's £600 million and more profit than most automakers several times its size will likely achieve during the global economic downturn.
Claus Schmiedel, a member of parliament in Porsche's home state Baden-Wuerttemberg, told Stuttgarter Nachrichten in an interview to be published on Saturday he had spoken to Porsche's finance chief and taken a look at the carmaker's books.
"On an operating level Porsche does not have a problem -- unlike other producers," Schmiedel said, adding the company will achieve an operating margin of 12 percent.
In the following year Porsche aims to sell more than 100,000 cars and again make a profit of more than 1 billion euros, Schmiedel said.
Porsche, whose fiscal year ends July 31, declined to comment.
The news of Porsche's healthy booty comes as a bit of a surprise considering its flirtation with bankruptcy back in March. Porsche has 9 billion euros in debt hanging over its head, though it told Reuters it can cope with the red ink.
Porsche had to borrow 700 million euro from Volkswagen to get itself out of an earlier jam, and it's now discussing a merger with Europe's largest volume automaker.
All in all not too shabby for an automaker pushed to the brink of insolvency.
