PARIS – Car manufacturer Peugeot and Citroen, PSA Group, said Tuesday that it made a profit in the first six months of the year, even when the coronavirus pandemic caused a sharp drop in sales.
The French company, which is in the process of merging with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, said its first-half earnings fell to 595 million euros ($696 million) from the 1.83 billion euros the previous year, while sales fell 35% to 25.1 billion euros.
Sales recovered in July when showrooms reopened after the pandemic crashed in many countries and PSA said it still expects to report profits during the period 2019 to 2021, with an adjusted operating margin of more than 4.5%.
It all depends, however, on the progression of the fitness crisis, with the number of instances emerging again in some countries, such as Spain, and some countries in the world by restoring stricter limits on public and business life.
“The operational effects and monetary scenario will feature long-term developments, which remain very dubious and cannot be as predicted at this time,” the corporate said.