Sales of Škoda Auto in the first half of the year increased by 20.8 percent year on year to 515,300 vehicles. In June alone, however, it fell by five percent year on year to 89,900 vehicles. This follows from data published by the parent company Volkswagen. Sales of the entire Volkswagen Group in the first half increased by 27.9 percent to 4.978 million vehicles. In June, it increased by 6.5 percent to 856,300 cars.
In addition to Škoda, the Volkswagen Group also includes a number of other brands. In addition to the VW flagship, they are, for example, Audi, Porsche, Seat, Bentley or Lamborghini.
The automotive industry around the world was hit hard last year by the covidu-19 pandemic, which had a negative impact on production activities and demand. This year, car manufacturers are facing a shortage of components, especially chips. It also disrupted the production activities of Škoda Auto.
The Mladá Boleslav carmaker operates three production plants in the Czech Republic, but also produces in China, Russia, Slovakia and India, mostly through group partnerships, as well as in Ukraine and Kazakhstan in cooperation with local partners. It operates in more than 100 markets.
Volkswagen announced in May that Škoda Auto had increased its operating profit by 46 percent to EUR 448 million (approximately CZK 11.4 billion) in the first quarter. He pointed out that the negative effects of poorer semiconductor availability were offset by various positive factors, in particular the favorable development of exchange rates. Škoda Auto’s quarterly sales increased by about four percent to 5.049 billion euros.