Mercedes 2023 Profit Prospects Look Bright, But China’s Electric Threat Looms

Mercedes-Benz reported strong first-quarter profits and analysts are confident that will continue through 2023. But longer-term, China’s gathering electric car challenge in Europe could be a problem even for the premium sector.

In the first quarter, Mercedes-Benz raised earnings before interest and tax by 5% compared with the same period of 2022 to €5.2 billion ($5.6 billion), as sales rose 8% to €37.5 billion ($41.4 billion). The profit margin for 2023 will be at the high end of the 12 to 14% target, Mercedes said.