Quarterly Figures: Profit Falls Again – VW Lowers Revenue Outlook
Volkswagen earned significantly less in the second quarter than a year ago. At the same time, the automaker now expects lower revenues for the full year than previously anticipated. The weak China business is among the factors weighing on results.
The Volkswagen Group recorded a sharp decline in profit in the second quarter. Net income fell by 33 percent to 1.5 billion euros in the April-to-June period compared to the same quarter last year. In the second quarter of 2025, Europe's largest automaker had still earned 2.3 billion euros, the company announced.
The DAX-listed group is also taking a more cautious view of business development for the full year. Instead of revenue growth of up to three percent, Volkswagen now expects revenues to remain stable at best. In the worst case, revenues could fall by as much as three percent below the prior-year figure. The group is maintaining its forecast for an operating return on sales of four to 5.5 percent.
Profit Also Down in First Half
In the first six months of the year, Volkswagen generated revenues of 158 billion euros, roughly 300 million euros less than in the same period last year. Profit fell by nearly twelve percent to 5.9 billion euros. The return on sales stood at 3.8 percent.
Group CEO Oliver Blume nonetheless expressed confidence in a "robust result above the prior-year level."
Weak China Business Weighs on Results
Volkswagen is being hit particularly hard by developments in the Chinese market. Global deliveries fell by nearly nine percent across the group to 2.1 million vehicles in the first half of the year. Sales in China collapsed by more than a third to 424,300 vehicles. Outside China, however, sales performed somewhat better.
The group cited tariffs, wars, geopolitical tensions and increasing competition as key challenges.
Cost-Cutting Plans Meet Resistance
Against this backdrop, Volkswagen is planning further cost-cutting measures. Up to 50,000 additional jobs worldwide and four plants in Germany are under review. These plans would come on top of the savings measures already announced.
By 2030, a total of 50,000 jobs are to be cut across the group in Germany, including 35,000 at the core Volkswagen brand. According to the company, more than 37,000 employees have already signed corresponding agreements.
The trade union and works council are rejecting further cuts. The state of Lower Saxony, which holds a 20 percent stake in Volkswagen and together with employee representatives commands a majority on the supervisory board, is also viewing the new cost-cutting plans critically.
