Jonas Froberg: Good job, Volvo – but wait with the champagne – Swedish Dagbladet

L önsamheten is twice as good as a year ago. But only half as good as the goal. Volvo’s profit margin must be sharpened further if we are to catch up with competitors. Today’s premiere of the new V90 is an important ingredient in the bilracet.

Volvo chief Hakan Samuelsson can not pop the champagne yet. Although Volvo made a record as did competitors BMW, Mercedes and Audi – and at even higher levels. Photo: Magnus Hjalmarsson Neideman

Many were skeptical when unknown Chinese Geely bought a lacerated Volvo 2010. The seller was Ford, who had stopped investing in automotive company several years earlier. But Geely’s ability to quickly build factories and dealer network in China has impressed.

Volvo Cars has now gently started a harvest after nearly five years of intensive development and investment. The operating profit has tripled and profitability has increased. But it is still not enough. Not at all the 8 percent operating margin as CEO Hakan Samuelsson wants: But it is fully approved considering where Volvo is right now:

Behind the good figures for 2015 are mainly Volvo blew the half-million barrier in sales , 503,127 cars, after having launched the SUV XC90. There was an increase of 8 percent. So many cars, Volvo has never sold.

Despite the good figures running Volvo mildly, not about the competition.

But before we corks up champagne: let’s say that the increase is absolutely necessary for Volvo’s survival. For despite the good figures all Volvo far behind the competition.

BMW, Mercedes and Audi also made the record, at some other levels: They sold each nearly four times as many cars as the Volvo.

Mercedes Benz is the only competitor , which released its 2015 figures: operating profit was EUR 13.8 billion, close to 130 billion, which represented a margin of 9 percent. While BMW and Audi same spot in 2014.

For Volvo was one thing particularly important in 2015: the large SUV, the SUV XC90.

The first fully proprietary product that would show “the new premium Volvo “after Geelyköpet.

the word premium implies the pure Swedish Volvo to take paid well, and at the end had the whole 88 000 orders inside the XC90 – far more than expected. Most XC90 has also sold the most expensive execution (inscription). It makes high profit per car.

Behind the increase in profit is of course much more: Quickly foray into China, the pickup in the US – where it is finally built a factory and the currency has played into the hands of the company.

But let’s say: Volvo’s profit is extremely important. It will namely be needed.

The automotive industry is changing right now in the ground. The pigs expensive elekrifieringen taking off, new competitors like Apple and Google wants to launch new electric and autonomous cars a few years.

Volvo behind with electrification. It is true that plug-in hybrids, but may not be an electric car until 2019. It is too late.

This was the world premiere on Thursday: the new large V90 wagon appeared in the Royal Garden. It is simply combi version of the big sedan S90 which was launched in December. V90 is larger and more luxurious than the current V70 / XC70.

How important then is V90? Not as important as the Volvo combi traditionally been.

Close your eyes and think of the Volvo 245, 745, 945, 850 hatchback, V70 and XC70. They are rikslikare in Sweden – unchallenged kings of the sales charts, the car garages and villa driveway engines.

But with Volvo’s global presence, things have changed: Sweden The market was in January, just 11 percent of Volvo’s sales.

the markets in China and the US is far more important: Soon sells Volvo close to twice as many cars in China as in Sweden (7200 in China in January compared with 3 900 in Sweden – and good two were the United States with 4200 cars).

in China, estate cars totally uninteresting and the United States combined market increasingly taken over by SUVs.

But in Sweden, the V90 will be important. the dramaturgy is already clear: All will today sigh and shake their heads and say, “It’s too expensive. Excessive “since Volvo will produce a company car package with attractive price and presto – whether you like it or not, the V90 to adorn the driveways in Taby, Sweden, Linköping and Nordmaling.