After rally achieved in yesterday's session, when the Eurostoxx auto closed with an increase close to 4% driven by Continental and Pirelli, the European automotive sector remains at the center of attention. Two bigwigs in the sector, Daimler e A dog, presented their second quarter accounts this morning.
Result in chiaroscuro for Daimler, which closed the three months April-June in the red for the first time in 10 years. The loss is equal to 1,2 billion euros and is due to the costs related to the Dieselgate case and the recall of some vehicles: "Our results were mainly influenced by extraordinary items for 4,2 billion euros", explained the president, Ola Kallenius.
Il turnover grew by 5%, to 42,7 billion euros, despite the number of vehicles sold falling by 1%. Daimler, which has already revised its guidance for 2019 downwards, a significantly lower EBIT is expected by the end of the year than in 2018.
As regards the reactions of the markets, in Frankfurt the Daimler title gains 1,28%, supported by yet another day of increases in the Eurostoxx European sector (+0,8%)
Turning to the French house, which brings together the Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Opel and Vauxhall brands, A dog closed the first half with earnings up 23,7% at 1,8% billion euros. A result achieved despite the drop in global sales. Down the turnover, dropped by 0,7% to 38,3 billion. The operating profitability of the group reached 8,7% of sales (+0,9 points in one year), also in the automotive division.
Il operating margin stood at "a record level," CFO Philippe de Rovira said in a call with reporters. “The market got tougher in the first half, which didn't stop us from having solid results,” he added.
PSA announced ten days ago a 12,8% decline in its worldwide sales, to 1,9 million vehicles. A drop taken into account due to the suspension of sales to Iran in the summer of 2018, under the effect of US sanctions. The second factor behind the decline in sales was the collapse in PSA volumes in China.
