STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Autoliv forecast its margins will rise in 2025, despite challenging conditions for the automotive sector due to geopolitical uncertainties and likely trade tariffs.
The Swedish company, which supplies equipment across the autos industry, on Friday reported fourth quarter core profits slightly above analyst expectations.
Autoliv said in a statement it expected its adjusted operating margin to rise to a range of between 10% and 10.5% in 2025, from the 9.7% it achieved in 2024.
The autos industry has been hit hard over the past few years by supply chain issues, a slowdown in EV sales and continued high costs. As a result, light vehicle production (LVP), a gauge Autoliv is highly dependent on, has suffered.
CEO Mikael Bratt said Autoliv expected a challenging year for the sector, with LVP falling and further geopolitical risks.
“This uncertainty makes it challenging to predict how business conditions in general and automotive markets in particular will develop in 2025,” Bratt said.
Fourth quarter operating profit, excluding items affecting comparability, rose to $349 million from $334 million a year before, Autoliv said. This exceeded a company-provided consensus which had on average forecast a profit of $340 million.
The car safety equipment maker’s Swedish-listed shares were down 2% at 1212 GMT. They had risen nearly 1% ahead of the earnings report and were down by as much as 6% after it.
(Reporting by Anna Chaberska in Gdansk and Marie Mannes in Stockholm; Editing by Terje Solsvik, Stine Jacobsen and Alexander Smith)
