Volkswagen has warned of a €5.1bn hit to its operating profits this year after its sports-car maker Porsche said it would delay the rollout of its electric vehicles and prolong internal combustion engine products.
Europe’s largest carmaker is lowering its annual profit guidance for the second time this year, blaming “a dramatically declining demand” for luxury goods in China and a 15 per cent US tariff on vehicles imported from Europe.
Porsche, part of the VW group, said on Friday that — “due to market conditions” — it would scrap the planned release of a new range of EVs positioned above the Cayenne and would initially offer only the petrol or plug-in hybrid versions. The development of a software platform for Porsche EVs in the 2030s would also be rescheduled.