Porsche recently announced a more than 20% decline in deliveries in China and Europe over the first quarter of 2025. The company is still contending with complicated regulatory hurdles and increased competition. As the luxury car manufacturer rode out an 8% drop in sales, it collectively sold just 71,470 units, underscoring the wider uncertainties rippling across the global automotive universe.
One major factor contributing to this downturn is the discontinuation of the internal combustion engine (ICE) version of the Porsche Macan in the European Union. Porsche will end the global production of ICE versions of the 718 Cayman and 718 Boxster models by the middle of 2025. Even more impressive, the company is making a highly ambitious move to all-electric variants. Porsche, like every other manufacturer, is taking these moves to become more agile and better accustomed to changing market demands. Additionally, they are following through with stringent EU cybersecurity regulations mandating a cybersecurity management system (CSMS) for vehicles over their entire lifecycle.
Against this backdrop of change, Porsche is leaning into marketing and the sales of its ongoing line-up – which it credits with being “very young and very attractive.” Matthias Becker, head of the executive board for sales and marketing at Porsche AG, made it clear—it’s all about customer demand. As he explained, “Demand is still at a strong baseline.” This is a brand and product portfolio investment with very strategic long-term goals. This makes it possible for them to react swiftly and with fantastic precision in order to meet demands of customers.
Yet for all of these positive signs, external pressures have proven to be a major obstacle for Porsche. The firm is caught up in rising worldwide tariffs begun underneath Donald Trump, which have sown chaos within the car business. A 25% tariff on car imports to the United States has raised concerns that importers may need to pass these costs onto consumers, potentially dampening demand.
At the same time, pressure from Chinese automotive manufacturers has increased dramatically, making these challenges starker. The combination of lagging global demand and trade wars has resulted in a disappointing performance for Porsche in recent months. Becker emphasized the impact of import-related delivery bottlenecks on getting some of those model lines delivered during the same period last year. This backdrop added further pressure on the company to deliver for their customers.
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