The Chinese cae maker Geely, owner of the Swedish brand Volvo, is suffering severely from the corona crisis. In the first six months of the year, the company reported a fall in profits of as much as 43%.
Due to the lockdown measures, the company was forced to keep factories closed for some time. Furthermore, the crisis reduced the demand for cars. The quarantine kept customers away from showrooms. Car makers were then forced to reduce their production.
Geely closed the accounting period with a profit of 2.3 billion yuan, which is 279 million euros. The company’s turnover was almost a quarter lower. The target of delivering at least 1.41 million cars this year has been adjusted to 1.32 million vehicles.
Figures show that the low point of the crisis for manufacturer seems to be behind, with increasing sales in recent months. Geely, however, continues to warn of the many uncertainties in the market. According to the company, 2020 will be the most difficult year in the company’s history. In addition, Geely also feels the “intense competition” on the Chinese car market, according to reports.
Despite the crisis, Geely managed to remain profitable. The automaker joined a select list with Toyota and Tesla. In order to reduce costs, the Chinese have taken various measures. For example, in the first half of the year, the workforce was reduced by 12% to 38,000.