During this period, the Schaeffler Group generated revenue of EUR 8,971 m (prior year: EUR 10,839 m). Excluding the impact of currency translation, revenue declined significantly by 15.4 percent during this period, mainly due to the decline in demand in connection with the coronavirus pandemic.

In the third quarter, demand improved in particular due to an upturn in the two Automotive divisions, meaning that the decline compared to the third quarter of the previous year was only 2.6%. The main reason for the fall in sales in the reporting period was the volume-related decline in sales in all three divisions.

The four regions were affected differently by the pandemic. The Greater China region recorded currency-adjusted sales growth of 8.1% in the reporting period due to the recovery that began in the region in the second quarter; in the third quarter, growth was 16.5% compared to the same quarter of the previous year. The other three regions each recorded a significant currency-adjusted decline in sales in the first nine months. This amounted to 22.6% in the Europe region, 18.4% in the Americas and 19.3% in Asia/Pacific.

The Schaeffler Group generated EBIT before special items of EUR 385 m in the first nine months, significantly below the prior year figure (EUR 883 m). This corresponds to an EBIT margin before special items of 4.3 percent (prior year: 8.1 percent).

Strong third quarter

The Automotive Technologies division generated sales revenue of € 5,429 million in the first nine months of 2020 (previous year: € 6,772 million). Adjusted for currency effects, sales fell significantly by 18.2% compared to the previous year, mainly due to volume-related factors. Following a slump in global automotive production in the first half of the year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the third quarter saw a significant recovery in demand, particularly in the Greater China and Americas regions. Global automotive production fell by 23% in the reporting period, meaning that the Automotive Technologies division outperformed the market by around 5 percentage points in the same period. The significant decline in sales during the first nine months of 2020 affected all regions with the exception of Greater China.

In the first nine months, the Industrial division achieved EBIT before special items of EUR 195 million (previous year: EUR 277 million), which corresponds to an EBIT margin before special items of 8.4% (previous year: 10.3%).

The Group employed 83,711 people as at September 30, 2020 (December 31, 2019: 87,748), which corresponds to a decrease of 4.6% or 4,037 jobs in the reporting period.

Forecast prepared for the 2020 financial year

The structural and efficiency measures initiated in spring 2019 had a positive impact on the cost of sales. In addition, measures were introduced and continued to offset the financial effects of the coronavirus pandemic. These include the introduction and expansion of short-time working, the reduction of time accounts, hiring freezes and temporary plant closures. The voluntary redundancy program was already expanded from 1,300 to 1,900 jobs to be cut in the first quarter.

In September, the Schaeffler Group communicated a comprehensive package of measures defining structural adjustments in Europe, with a focus on Germany, as part of which 4,400 jobs are to be cut. In addition to reducing structural overcapacity and consolidating locations, the package of measures also aims to strengthen competitiveness and expand local expertise.

The Schaeffler Group anticipates revenue growth of -13 to -11.5 percent excluding the impact of currency translation for 2020 as a whole. At the same time, the company expects to generate an EBIT margin before special items of 4.5 to 5.5 percent for 2020 as a whole.