Audi Hungária revenue slips to €5.3 bln in 2012

Revenue of the Hungarian unit of German carmaker Audi fell 5.6% to €5.282 billion in 2012 as engine output climbed but fewer cars rolled off the assembly line, Audi Hungária managing director Thomas Faustmann said on Tuesday. Audi turned out 1,915,567 engines at its base in Győr in 2012, 1.7% more than in the previous year. The plant assembled 33,553 cars last year, down 15.1% from 2011. About 53% of the engines went into Audis and the rest were put into other Volkswagen group vehicles. The unit's after-tax profit came to €334 million last year, said financial managing director Axel Schifferer. He added that engine output accounted for three-fourths of revenue last year, while car assembly made up 14%. Audi Hungária's investments swelled from €685m in 2011 to €1.038 billion in 2012 as the company built a new plant at the base in Győr. The new plant will be inaugurated in the summer. Audi has invested a total of €5.77 billion in Győr during the twenty years of its presence there. Last year, Audi Hungária hired more than 1,600 employees, raising its headcount to 8,663 by year-end, and over 9,000 so far this year.