Updated Version 2 - Third Update - Volkswagen's losses further expand due to the impairment of Porsche.

Add milestone information in the third paragraph, the sixth refers to share price, the eighth to investors

Rachel More/Christina Amann

Reuters, Berlin, October 29 - Volkswagen VOWG_p.DE saw its third quarter losses expand further, marking its worst results in more than a decade. As the world's second-largest car manufacturer, the company is facing increasingly tough challenges in key markets while pushing forward a major restructuring.

Europe’s largest carmaker, Volkswagen (link), reported a quarterly operating loss of 5.9 billion euros (approximately $6.6 billion), impacted by one-off charges totaling around 8 billion euros—mainly related to an impairment on its Porsche stake P911_p.DE.

A company spokesperson said that this is Volkswagen’s biggest quarterly loss since the fourth quarter of 2015, when the German group booked huge one-off charges over the "Dieselgate" emission cheating scandal.

“The results for the first nine months make one thing clear: We cannot afford any more delays. We must act swiftly and decisively,” Chief Financial Officer Arno Antlitz said in a video statement.

The group’s share price, already near a ten-year low, fell as much as 2% after the open, but by 09:00 GMT the loss had narrowed to less than 1%.

Quarterly revenue fell 6% to 75.3 billion euros.

https://www.reuters.com/graphics/VOLKSWAGEN-BLUME/SHARES/zdpxjwmwlpx/chart.png

An “early warning signal” for the industry

These results highlight the pressure facing Volkswagen, forcing the need for a fundamental overhaul of its business model—the company not only faces fierce competition in China and billions of euros in annual tariff costs, but also needs to make massive investments in Europe’s shift to electric vehicles, while Chinese rivals continue to gain market share in Europe.

Moritz Kronenberger of Volkswagen investor Union Investment said: “The loss reported by Volkswagen today is a warning signal for the whole sector and industry, and should also be a wake-up call for policymakers.”

CEO Oliver Blume plans to cut 100,000 jobs (link) across the group, including Audi and Porsche brands. Under the plan, up to four factories in Germany face closure, a move strongly opposed by labor unions (link) and which could lead to strikes starting early next year.

Antlitz said that, even excluding one-off items, Volkswagen’s operating margin for the first nine months was just 3.8%.

“In the long term, that is not enough,” he added.

Under its restructuring plan, Volkswagen aims to achieve an operating margin of 8% to 10% by 2030.

Last month, the company forecast a one-off charge of 10 billion euros and cut its profit margin target (link) for 2026 to no more than 1%.

https://www.reuters.com/graphics/VOLKSWAGEN-REDUNDANCIES/RESULTS/lbvgdkkmxpq/chart.png

(1 US dollar = 0.8959 euros)

(To assist non-English speakers, Reuters provides automated translations of its reports in several other languages. As automated translations may contain errors or may not provide necessary context, Reuters does not guarantee the accuracy of the translated text. The translations are provided for the convenience of readers only, and Reuters accepts no responsibility for any damages or losses resulting from the use of automated translation features.)