Audi 2008 Annual Report Download - page 172

153
Management Report
128 Business and underlying
situation
128 The Group
131 Corporate steering
134 Research and development
136 Employee matters
139 Audi in society
141 Environmental aspects
147 Economic environment
150 Course of business
157 Financial performance
159 Net worth
160 Financial position
160 Report on post-balance sheet
date events
161 Risk report
165 Report on expected
developments
169 Disclaimer
New Audi A4 goes into production in India
In the fall of 2008, a second model was added to local assembly in India: the new Audi A4.
Just like the Audi A6, the vehicle is shipped to India as sets of parts (CKD) and assembled in
Aurangabad on the premises of ŠKODA AUTO INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED in an exclusive zone
that conforms to AUDI AG quality standards.
The Audi brand is planning to build a total of over 18,000 cars in this important growth market
by 2015, including around 11,000 Audi A4 models. In order to do so, the Company will invest
over EUR 30 million in the location over the next few years. Around 50 workers are currently
employed there on the Audi CKD assembly line.
Deliveries and distribution
In the wake of the financial crisis and its negative repercussions for the real economy, the de-
mand for cars in many sales markets experienced a dramatic collapse towards the end of last
year. Despite this extremely difficult environment, the Audi Group increased its deliveries world-
wide by 1.9 percent in the past fiscal year to 1,223,506 (1,200,701) vehicles.
The Audi core brand performed particularly well. Thanks to a fresh, attractive product range and
modern engines, deliveries reached 1,003,469 (964,151) vehicles, surpassing the prior-year
tally by 4.1 percent. That made 2008 the 13th record-breaking year in a row for the brand with
the four rings, which delivered over one million premium cars for the first time in its history.
AUDI VEHICLE DELIVERIES – LARGEST MARKETS
Deliveries to
customers
2008
Year-on-year
percentage change
Year-on-year
percentage change
in overall market
2008 market
share, percent
Audi worldwide 1,003,469 4.1
Germany 258,111 1.6 – 1.8 8.1
China (incl. Hong Kong) 119,598 17.3 7.8 2.2
Great Britain 101,522 0.8 – 11.3 4.7
USA 87,760 – 6.1 – 18.0 0.7
Italy 62,053 5.0 – 13.4 2.8
Spain 51,421 – 12.6 – 28.1 4.2
France 51,200 7.7 – 0.7 2.3
Belgium 30,000 12.5 2.1 5.1
Netherlands 18,234 9.0 – 1.1 3.4
Austria 17,370 9.5 – 1.5 5.6
Switzerland 17,137 9.9 1.4 5.9
Russia 17,076 13.8 15.5 0.6
Japan 15,800 4.3 – 3.9 0.4
Sweden 15,597 0.8 – 17.3 5.8
South Africa 9,525 – 21.6 – 24.3 2.9
In its home market Germany, the Audi brand performed particularly well despite an overall
market that contracted by 1.8 percent. The number of new vehicles delivered to customers
during the period under review reached 258,111 (254,014), thereby actually improving upon
the prior-year total by 1.6 percent. The Company achieved a market share of 8.1 (7.9) percent,
its highest ever as a premium manufacturer. The most important growth drivers were most
notably the Audi A4 car line, which saw the arrival of the new Audi A4 Avant in the early part
of last year, and the Audi A5 Coupé.
Even in the Western European markets, some of which declined quite considerably, deliveries of
the Audi brand increased by a total of 3.1 percent to 408,873 (396,393) premium cars. Though
the brand with the four rings was unable to completely escape the devastating 28.1 percent
slump in the Spanish car market, vehicle deliveries in the depressed car markets of France and
Italy bucked the market trend with healthy growth rates of 7.7 and 5.0 percent respectively.
And despite the 11.3 percent downturn in Great Britain as a whole, deliveries of 101,522
(100,712) vehicles held steady at the previous year’s high level.