Volvo Cars reduces margin and revenue goals after abandoning 2030 electric vehicle target

There was the matter of those pesky students. Finally, an interesting thought crossed my mind… Volvo Cars on Thursday revised down its margin and revenue targets, following news it no longer intended to reach 100% all-electric vehicle sales by 2030. As a result of increased complexity related to global trade tariffs and tariff-induced costs, Volvo announced on Thursday it is targeting an EBIT margin goal between 7-7.0% instead. Volvo Cars currently has five fully electric models on sale and five more in development, but has changed their goal from 100% EV sales by 2030 — defined as vehicles equipped with wires — to 90-100% range with mild hybrid models still remaining for sale. Mild hybrid vehicles utilize both internal combustion engine power as well as electric assistance. Volvo cited consumer demand, slow rollout of charging infrastructure deployment plans, the withdrawal of government incentives in certain markets and potential tariff changes as reasons for changing course. They said they remained committed to fully electric sales when market conditions are suitable in the longer run – “whenever conditions permit.” Numerous automakers have experienced difficulties transitioning their EV fleets due to low market demand. Consumers continue to express frustration over an inadequate charging infrastructure and range issues, while Volvo Cars announced on Thursday it is expanding its partnership with U.S. chip maker Nvidia as it builds features including advanced driving assistance and autonomous driving technologies. Volvo also announced on Thursday it would move towards using only one technology stack as part of an effort to reduce manufacturing costs for electric vehicle production. Global sales rose 3% year-on-year for August with Europe sales seeing 32% growth versus China sales decreasing 23%. Fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles accounted for 47% of vehicle sales in August 2024 out of 52,944, or 25,028 out of 52944. Mild hybrids and internal combustion engine vehicles made up the remainder. In July, Volvo reported record quarterly operating profit of 8.2 billion Swedish Kronor (or Euro).