Porsche And Audi Bouy Volkswagen Profits In First Quarter

Volkswagen AG, Europe's biggest carmaker, said the addition of luxury manufacturer Porsche partly offset a drop in first-quarter operating profit at the VW namesake brand caused by a recession in its home region.

The Audi division retained its position as VW's largest earnings contributor with 1.31 billion euros ($1.71 billion) in first-quarter earnings, or 56 percent of the group total versus 45 percent a year earlier.

VW-brand profit amounted to 590 million euros, ($773 million), falling 9 percentage points to 25 percent of the total.

Porsche, which was integrated into VW in August, generated 24 percent of parent-company earnings.

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