Volvo Car Corp on Friday reported a
480-million-kronor (74-million-dollar) loss for 2012, citing weaker
sales in many European markets and China.
The group said it sold 421,951 cars during the year, down 6.1 per
cent from 2011.
China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group took over ownership of the
Swedish carmaker in 2010 from US-based Ford Motor Co.
Volvo had reported a 1-billion-kronor net profit for 2011. Net
sales in 2012 dipped 0.9 per cent to 124 billion kronor while the
operational result was break-even.
A one-time gain of 590 million kronor from the sale of platform
technology to Geely helped improve the 2012 results.
In China, Volvo Cars reported a sales decrease in 2012 of almost
11 per cent to 41,989 cars.
The eurozone crisis weighed on sales in Europe. They decreased 10
per cent. But sales increased slightly in the United States to about
68,000 cars. Russia and Japan were other markets where sales
improved.
For 2013, the group predicted markets would grow in the US and
China while Europe would remain affected by economic uncertainty.
