Renault’s earnings hurt by crisis

PARIS - Agence France-Presse

Renault Chief Operating Officer Carlos Tavares poses with the new Clio IV. AFP Photo

Renault said on July 27 that its first-half earnings had been hit hard by the economic downturn in Europe but a strong international performance enabled the French car-maker to avoid the heavy losses incurred by its rival Peugeot.

Net profit at the group for the first six months of the year fell 39 percent to 746 million euros ($917.1 million) with Renault’s international partners Nissan, AB Volvo and Avtovaz contributing 630 million of that bottom-line total.

Overall sales were relatively stable at 20.9 billion euros, down 0.8 percent on a year earlier.

“Continued growth internationally was not enough to offset the weakness of the European market,” the company said in a statement.

Renault admitted that it had lost market share in Europe and that its order book was weak, but it maintained its forecast of a slight upturn in sales for the full year, “provided there is no further downturn in the European market.” The group said it was also keeping a close eye on some of its suppliers in Europe, some of whom were said to be in financial difficulty, and a slowdown in some emerging markets, notably Latin America.