The manufacturer's results were notably impacted by "the fall in the automotive market in Europe linked to the shortage of semiconductors, mainly affecting sales of the Renault brand, Dacia being less exposed to the most affected suppliers", indicates the group. French in a press release.
The group's sales fell by 17.1% over one year, including commercial vehicles, but this drop is partly offset by a rise in prices.
Due to a lack of cars to deliver, the group's order portfolio in Europe at the end of March was at "a record level for 15 years" and represented 3.9 months of sales, with good orders for new Dacias in particular.
Its subsidiaries AvtoVaz (Lada) and Renault Russia posted sales cut by a third and sales down 15.7% over the period, to 0.9 billion euros.
The AvtoVaz factories, which have been shut down for three weeks, are to resume activity for a few days from Monday, April 25, while the Renault factory in Moscow remains shut down.
Renault is still evaluating the "possible options" for an exit from Avtovaz, the Russian market leader, in which it owns 67%.
"In a market environment very disrupted by the conflict in Ukraine, the semiconductor crisis and inflation, Renault Group is continuing its recovery and accelerating the deployment of its strategy", commented Thierry Piéton, Chief Financial Officer of Renault Group.
The group confirmed its updated financial objectives at the end of March, aiming for an operating margin "of around 3%" for the year 2022.
© 2022 AFP