Volkswagen announced Friday that it no longer anticipates any growth in revenue this year, abandoning its earlier projections and laying the groundwork for a sweeping corporate overhaul aimed at protecting the automaker from costly tariffs and growing competition out of China.
The news accompanied the release of second-quarter financial results that showed profits tumbled 9.5%. CEO Oliver Blume is championing a dramatic restructuring effort — which includes a proposal to eliminate 100,000 jobs — in order to make the company more competitive on costs.
Where Volkswagen had previously projected sales revenue growth of up to 3% for the year, the company now anticipates a decline of as much as 3%. The automaker did hold firm on its forecast for an operating margin between 4.0% and 5.5%.
The German automotive giant, whose portfolio includes Porsche and Audi, recorded an operating profit of €3.5 billion — roughly $3.98 billion — during the April through June period. Analysts had been expecting a modest improvement over the same stretch last year, with forecasts pointing to a €3.9 billion result, according to a poll by Visible Alpha.
Blume noted that the company managed to absorb “continued unavoidable headwinds in the double-digit billions” during the first half of 2026.
“At the same time, the environment for the automotive industry remains extremely challenging,” Blume added, pointing to geopolitical crises, trade conflicts, high regulatory requirements, volatile markets and intensified competition as factors weighing on the sector.
