Volkswagen sales fall 9% amid job-cut reports

Volkswagen said vehicle deliveries fell almost 9% in the second quarter from a year earlier, as the German carmaker faces pressure from weak demand in China and reports of deeper job cuts.

The decline in April-June deliveries accelerated from a 4% fall in the first quarter. Volkswagen executive Marco Schubert said the situation in China remained challenging and that the company could not avoid a declining overall market there, despite early momentum from new locally developed electric vehicles.

Volkswagen is already planning to cut at least 50,000 jobs in Germany by 2030. Recent media reports said the company is considering up to 100,000 job cuts worldwide and the closure of four plants in Germany.

IG Metall organised protests at Volkswagen sites across Germany on Thursday while management presented cost-cutting plans to the supervisory board. Volkswagen made no major announcement that day and repeated earlier plans to reduce capacity and its model range.

The wider German car industry is also under pressure in China. BMW said Friday its second-quarter car sales fell almost 5% worldwide, including a 30.2% drop in China.