Skoda Posted 28.2 Million Euro Q1 Profit

The bad economic conditions have not been a deterrent for Czech manufacturer Skoda. The company has posted its financial result for the first quarter of 2009 and things don't look as bad as some might have guessed. Skoda posted a 28.2 million euro profit for the period, making it one of the few manufacturers who haven't lost money in 2009.

“The first quarter of 2009 was very hard – the impacts of the worldwide economic crisis are also leaving their mark on Škoda. But with our modern and environmentally-friendly products, we have succeeded in expanding our market share in important markets such as Germany and China," Reinhard Jung Skoda Auto chairman of the board said in a release.

In the first three months of the year, Skoda sold a total of 143,079 cars, resulting in a 17.5 percent drop from the same period of 2008. Overall, despite the drop in sales volume, the manufacturer managed to get a 28.2 million euro profit. Much of the favorable results is due to the scrappage incentives adopted by several European countries. As for the prospects of 2009, company officials are as cautious as all of the other players in the industry are.

“We know that 2009 will be particularly hard for us as well as for the entire automotive industry. The prospects are still unclear however, and filled with substantial risks. Yet I am convinced that through our Scout profit improvement programme, we will succeed in sustaining our financial strength and stability and even in this period of crisis, achieve a reasonable profit,” Holger Kintscher, Skoda board member said in the release.