Audi 2014 Annual Report Download - page 191

REPORT ON EXPECTED DEVELOPMENTS, RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES
REPORT ON EXPECTED DEVELOPMENTS
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REPORT ON EXPECTED
DEVELOPMENTS
/ ANTICIPATED DEVELOPMENT OF
THE ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT
// GENERAL ECONOMIC SITUATION
Our statements on the general economic situation are based in
particular on current assessments by external institutions. These
include economic research institutes, banks, multinational
organizations and consultancy firms.
The Audi Group anticipates a slight rise in global economic
growth for 2015. The economy in most industrial nations should
pick up. The majority of emerging economies should continue to
achieve higher rates of expansion than industrial nations. How-
ever, it is unlikely that the comparatively high growth rate of
previous years will be achieved.
In Western Europe, economic recovery should continue in
2015. Developments though will continue to depend on
whether solutions can be found to the structural challenges
in a large number of countries.
The German economy is likely to benefit from the healthy state
of the labor market and achieve stable growth on a par with
the previous year.
The economic situation in Central and Eastern Europe will de-
pend on how the conflict between Russia and Ukraine develops.
At present we expect merely moderate economic growth for the
region.
We anticipate a faster rate of expansion in the United States.
Consumer spending fueled by the continuing healthy state of
the labor market will be a major factor in the economic upturn.
South America’s economy is likely to expand slightly more
rapidly in 2015.
We expect that the Asia-Pacific region will again achieve the
most dynamic economic growth. The Chinese economy should
continue to grow at a comparatively high rate. However, the
structural adjustments being made to strengthen the domestic
economy lead us to expect a lower rate of growth. For Japan, we
anticipate a slightly higher rate of expansion than in 2014.
// CAR MARKET
The Audi Group estimates that global automotive markets will
show only slight growth overall in 2015. Patterns of demand
are likely to develop differently from region to region.
We anticipate that Western Europe’s further economic recovery
will bring a slight rise in registrations of new cars compared
with the level of last year. The German car market too should
achieve slight growth.
Sales of cars overall in Central and Eastern Europe are likely to
reveal lower demand than in the previous year because new
registrations in the Russian market are expected to be down.
With the economic situation in the United States improving
further, the automotive market there should also maintain its
upward trend. Growth momentum is likely to be lower than
last year. We expect to see a fall in demand for cars in South
America in 2015.
REPORT ON EXPECTED DEVELOPMENTS,
RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES
The world economy and global demand for cars will once again expand
slightly in 2015. In a competitive environment that will remain intense,
defining features of the Audi Group’s business development will be the
expansion of international production structures and high upfront
expenditures for new models and technologies. Audi is paving the way for
future growth through the biggest investment program in the history of the
Company to date.