AUDI Group surpassed its targets for the year 2012. Despite the significant effects of the debt crisis in some countries and a contracting overall market in Europe, the company posted record figures for production, shipments, revenue and earnings. In the past financial year, the brand with the four rings sold more than 1.45 million automobiles (2012: 1,455,123; 2011: 1,302,659), representing a growth of 11.7 percent or approximately 152,500 additional customers, and increased its revenue by 10.6 percent to €48.8 billion (2012: €48,771 million; 2011: €44,096 million). The Audi Group was also able to increase its operating profit to €5.4 billion (2012: €5,380 million; 2011: €5,348 million), a record result in the company's history so far. In the full year, the operating return on sales of 11.0 percent was above the strategic target corridor of eight to 10 percent. Rupert Stadler, the CEO of AUDI AG, said: “2012 was a very successful year for us. We surpassed our targets and added an attractive premium brand, Ducati, to our brand portfolio. We intend to continue our growth in 2013 and with two new plants this year, we will create the right conditions to reinforce our claim to leadership over the long term.” As of 2016, Audi will produce the next generation of the Q5 at its new plant in San José Chiapa, Mexico. The main return figures demonstrate that the Audi Group continues to be one of the world's most successful automobile manufacturers. For Axel Strotbek, Board of Management Member for Finance and Organization at AUDI AG, the company's high profitability reflects the success of the growth strategy. The CFO regards investing in the future as evidence of farsighted management: “We already initiated the biggest investment program in our history in 2011. We now plan total investment averaging more than €3.5 billion each year until 2015, in order to effectively pursue our growth path.” The high investment volume of recent years is paying off. Across all models, the Audi brand sold about 739,000 cars in Europe last year, improving by a significant 1.8 percent compared with the prior year in a difficult market environment. In the United States, the company set new sales records in each month of the year 2012, further accelerating the growth rates of 2011. And the brand with the four rings maintained its clear lead in the premium segment in China. The company's global strategy showed positive results – Audi achieved record unit sales in more than 50 markets last year. The Audi Group anticipates a slight increase in revenue in the years 2013 and 2014. New models of the Audi brand will help the company to achieve this goal. The automobile manufacturer from Ingolstadt continued its model offensive at the Geneva Motor Show, with the Audi A3 Sportback e-tron for example. – SG
