Market challenges in China saw deliveries in the country drop 33%
By Dominic Chopping
Porsche car deliveries fell 16% in the first nine months of the year, weighed by a tough Chinese market, the end of production of the combustion-engined 718 model line and strong demand for the all-electric Macan in the same period last year.
The German luxury sports-car maker said Friday that it delivered 178,532 cars, down from 212,509 in the prior year period.
Deliveries fell across all of its markets, with deliveries in its largest sales region of North America falling 13% to 56,088, while continued market challenges in China meant deliveries in the country dropped 33% to 21,493 vehicles.
In its overseas and emerging-markets region, Porsche delivered 35,048 cars, a decline of 19%.
In Europe, Porsche deliveries fell 11% to 44,949 cars excluding its home market of Germany, while German deliveries dropped 7%.
"In a persistently challenging market environment, the company continues to consistently pursue its value-oriented sales strategy and maintain a balanced relationship between supply and demand," it said.
Porsche said customer demand for the 911 remains very strong, with deliveries up 12% on year, while demand for its more exclusive and high-performance derivatives is also strong. The GTS, Turbo and GT models again accounted for a significant proportion of total sales in the first nine months of the year, it said.