Closure would be first VW factory shutdown in nearly 4 decades
Volkswagen, parent company Porsche SE cut 2024 profit forecasts
Q8etron production could end in 2025 source

BERLIN, July 9 Reuters Volkswagen on Tuesday warned it may close the Brussels site of its luxury brand Audi due to a sharp drop in demand for highend electric cars that has hit Europe39;s top carmaker, forcing it to cut its margin target for the current year.

Volkswagen has not shut down a plant since it closed the Westmoreland site in Pennsylvania in 1988, and the last VW brand chief to threaten closures in Europe stepped down months after doing so, according to a labour source.

Automakers have been hit hard by lower than expected EV demand after investing heavily in capacity and technology development, with Audi warning earlier this year its sales would dip in 2024 as it worked on introducing new models while also cutting costs.

Volkswagen said the costs of finding an alternative use for the Brussels plant or closing it, as well as other unplanned expenses, would have an impact totalling up to 2.6 billion euros 2.8 billion in the 2024 financial year.

It lowered its forecast for operating returns to 6.57 from 77.5, prompting parent company Porsche SE, which owns just under a third of Volkswagen AG but holds most of the voting rights, to lower its earnings forecast to 3.5 billion to 5.5 billion euros.

Frankfurtlisted shares in Volkswagen and Porsche SE were down 1.7 and 2.1, respectively,…