Guardian.co.uk – Big gains on derivative bets linked to Volkswagen shares offset a decline in nine-month earnings at Porsche SE’s core sports car business, the heavily indebted holding company said on Friday.
Porsche, scrambling to shore up its tattered balance sheet, blamed lower volumes and revenue as well as investments on its upcoming fourth model line and hybrid powertrain technology but insisted that its returns remained relatively healthy.
"A high earnings margin was still achieved," the company said in a statement, while a company spokesman added that it was "nearly in the double-digits".
That is still a drop from Porsche’s traditional margins of near 20 percent when markets were strong.
