Volkswagen led a trio of European auto makers in posting surprisingly strong results and reiterating their targets yesterday. Volkswagen AG, Europe's No. 1 car maker, posted a 22-per-cent rise in second-quarter operating profit to €2.12-billion ($3.36-billion). Its margin rose to 7.2 per cent. Volkswagen stuck to its guidance for improved results over last year's record figures, although it gave no specific targets. PSA Peugeot Citroën reported a 32.4-per-cent higher recurring operating profit of €1.115-billion, giving it a margin of 3.6 per cent. It repeated its 2008 margin target of 3.5 per cent. Fiat SpA confirmed its targets for this year and the next after posting a 19.6-per-cent rise in quarterly profit to €1.13-billion,beating market expectations. VOW (Frankfurt) rose €13.53 to €209.55; UG (Paris) rose €2.95 to €34.90; F (Milan) rose €1.43 to €11.86.
BUSINESS TICKER: INTERNATIONAL: EUROPE: AUTOMOTIVE
Volkswagen, Citroën, Fiat post strong results
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