VW posts record 2010 results, plans to do better this year

Europe’s biggest car manufacturer Volkswagen unveiled record 2010 results on Friday and said it would do even better this year, sending its shares soaring. VW made a 2010 net profit of 7.2 billion euros ($9.9 billion), a statement said, dwarfing the 2009 figure of 911 million euros.

Net profit got a boost from VW’s strong presence in China and other emerging markets, financial investments and the value of options related to its holding in luxury sports car maker Porsche, which VW wants to make its 10th brand. VW operating profit soared to 7.1 billion euros, more than three times the year-earlier figure of 1.9 billion euros, on sales up 21 percent to 126.9 billion euros. For the first time, the German group delivered more than seven million vehicles worldwide, posting a gain of 13.7 percent to 7.2 million units.

“VW is pounding the competition with tremendous force at present,” NordLB auto analyst Frank Schwope commented. He forecast that at the present rate, VW’s 2018 annual sales target of 10 million vehicles might be reached two or three years ahead of schedule.

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