Two of Germany’s biggest luxury carmakers have warned of a challenging international sales environment, particularly in their key market of China, as they cut costs to shore up profits. Mercedes-Benz reported a 53.8 per cent fall in profit to €1.
72 billion in the third quarter and cut its full-year profit margin. Sales in China fell 17 per cent while Germany suffered a 25 per cent drop. The carmaker said overall group sales fell by 6.
7 per cent year on year from €37 billion to €34.53 billion and sales of battery electric vehicles in its car division were almost a third lower, down to 42,544 units. The company’s key gauge of profitability, its adjusted return on sales, slid to 4.
7 per cent in the third quarter.
