Ursensollen, Germany – Operating earnings at automotive and commercial seat maker Grammer fell by 88% in the first quarter as production problems in the sector hit the supplier.
The only region to show revenue growth was North America, in a rebound from the particularly poor performance there in Q1 2021 because of the severe impact of the semiconductor shortage. As a result, this quarter's sales numbers were up by 17.5% to EUR144.1m, compared with EU132m in the period last year.
Sales revenue fell in EMEA, and more significantly in APAC, which was down by 13.7% to EUR89.1m.
The figures were hit by rising inflation, renewed coronavirus lockdowns affecting the Chinese market and sustained bottlenecks in the procurement process, the company said It also cited rising wage costs.
Across the business, sales were up 2.2% to EUR 515m in the first quarter of 2022.
Despite these difficulties, Grammer said it is standing by the guidance published for the year as a whole. This predicts revenue of about EUR2bn and operating EBIT in the range EUR35-45m.
