Berlin - German luxury carmaker
Audi reported Friday a 42.6-per-cent jump in first half
earnings powered ahead by growing sales in the key US and Chinese markets.
The top-end offshoot of Volkswagen said it booked an after-tax profit of 994 million euros (1.3 billion dollars), during the first six months of the year compared with 697 million euros in the same period last year.
Group operating profit surged 61.6 per cent to 1.33 billion euros.
"The global
economy is still experiencing a phase of fragility," said Audi chief Rupert Stadler releasing the results.
"Though auto markets are recovering, the various individual regions give a very mixed picture," he said.
"Asia and North America will be the drivers of growth, while here in Western
Europe we are experiencing falling sales now that government
economic stimulus programs have come to an end," he said.
The Audi results came in the wake of a string of strong results from Germany's leading auto groups, including Audi rival Mercedes-Benz.
Luxury carmakershave been benefiting from a pickup in demand in the US and a sharp rise in orders in China's booming auto market.
Audi plans to roll out 12 new or updated models this year, including the A1 entry-level model and the A7 Sportback.
Based in the southern German city of Ingolstadt Audi said deliveries rose by 17 per cent during the first half with production jumping by 31.4 per cent.
