Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess Pushes For Margin Improvements

Volkswagen Group's new chief executive Herbert Diess is pushing for faster margin improvements at its main Porsche, Audi and VW brands, German monthly Manager Magazin said. Diess is not satisfied with progress at Audi and wants the premium brand to achieve an operating margin of 12 per cent long term, compared with 8.4 per cent in 2017.

Without specifying its sources, Manager Magazin further said Porsche's investments in electric vehicle platforms have threatened its goal of reaching a margin of 15 per cent between 2021 and 2022, leading to a clash between Porsche chief Oliver Blume and Diess.

The Volkswagen brand is being pushed by Diess to achieve a 6 per cent margin target by 2020 or 2021, the magazine said.

Furthermore, Diess is demanding that Seat takes around 1,000 euros in costs out of each vehicle they produce.

A spokesman for Volkswagen Group declined to comment.