The figures, issued in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) were made public at an annual press conference held in Mladá Boleslav on 23rd February 2006.

The Škoda Auto Group made a pre-tax profit of £241.3m in 2005 (up 108% on 2004), while total revenues increased by 14.5% to £4.4 billion and turnover grew by 9.0%. Operating profit grew by 84.2% to £260.4m.

Last year, Škoda Auto delivered almost half a million cars to its customers – a total of 492,111 units of the Fabia, Octavia, and Superb model ranges – an increase of 9% – despite a stagnating global market.

The record figures have been achieved thanks to strong performances in all areas of the car market. Increasing demand for the award-winning Octavia and the arrival of exciting new models such as the Octavia estate and sporty vRS has driven sales upwards and contributed greatly to the record-breaking output of 494,127 cars.

The best-selling model in 2005 was the Fabia with 236,698 cars delivered to customers (2004: 247,600 units). The Fabia was closely followed by the Octavia with 233,322 cars sold worldwide achieving a growth by 28.4% (2004: 181,683 units). The Škoda Superb has been sold to 22,091 customers (2004: 22,392).

In Western Europe, Škoda sales increased by 14.8% to a total of 276,216 units. The most successful markets were Germany, Great Britain, and Spain. In Central and Eastern Europe (exclusive of the Czech Republic), Škoda Auto also saw a growth selling 185,713 cars. For the first time in history, Škoda became the market leader in Poland. Apart from the Czech Republic, Škoda continues to be number one in Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Bosnia and Herzegovina as well.

Detlef Wittig, Chairman of the Škoda Auto Board of Management, outlined the company’s future development: "The year 2006 will be marked by the Roomster, which will be launched in individual markets from the middle of this year. In order to secure a continuous growth of the company in coming years, significant attention will be paid to further expanding and development of new foreign assemblies in Russia and China, in particular. We will also endeavour to increase productivity and efficiency of our company, and pursue continuation of our successful cost-saving programme."

Skoda Octavia RS

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