By Mathias de Rozario
(Reuters) -French car parts supplier Valeo on Thursday reported 0.6% growth in sales for the third quarter of the year, a performance which was better than market expectations. It confirmed its full-year outlook, citing an outperformance in Europe.
BY THE NUMBERS
Valeo’s sales came in at 5.00 billion euros ($5.83 billion) in the third quarter of the year compared with 4.82 billion euros in a company-provided consensus. That included a negative 2.8% impact from changes in exchange rates.
The group registered a 7.4% improvement in sales in Europe at 1.92 billion euros.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
The group’s shares and sales have been hit this year by continued weakness in the automotive market coupled with the implementation of tariffs by the United States.
In July, the group lowered its outlook for the second time of the year citing an adverse currency impact of 750 million euros.
QUOTES
“With the right balance between regions and business lines, and with disciplined execution, we are in a position to confirm our guidance on all parameters for the year,” chief financial officer Edouard de Pirey said in a call with reporters.
“Discipline in execution means discipline on prices, maintaining our sales prices, obtaining normal compensation from customers when volumes are low, when there is inflation, when there are difficulties, but also standing firm with our suppliers and obtaining the right prices from them,” he added CONTEXT
The European car market has been affected by a prolonged slowdown in sales with new car registrations between January and August falling by 0.1% in the European Union, data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) showed. During the year, the dollar has also significantly weakened against the euro. The exchange rate declined by more that 10% until October 22 among concerns about slowing growth and the impact from tariffs on the U.S. economy.
($1 = 0.8575 euros)
(Reporting by Mathias de Rozario in Gdansk, additional reporting by Gilles Guillaume in Paris; Editing by Matt Scuffham)
