INGOLSTADT, Germany (Reuters) - Volkswagen's Audi (DE:VOWG_p) gave an early indication of the costs of the "Dieselgate" scandal to the German carmaker on Thursday, reporting that it had cut into its 2015 profit.
Audi said its operating profit fell 6.1 percent to 4.84 billion euros ($5.3 billion) on emissions-related costs of 228 million euros, combined with provisions for recalls of cars fitted with Takata Corp (T:7312) air bags.
As the main contributor to parent VW's earnings, Audi's results provide some idea of the performance of the parent group, which last month postponed the release of its results until late April because the financial effects of the affair remain unclear.
VW already set aside 6.7 billion euros in provisions for costs of the recalls in the third quarter of last year.
Audi said it expects to increase deliveries and revenue "moderately" to new records this year, from 1.8 million cars and 58.4 billion euros respectively.
The Ingolstadt-based automaker admitted in November to using illicit emissions-control devices in about 85,000 3.0 litre diesel engines, and submitted proposals for technical fixes to U.S. authorities last month.
"Conditions were demanding, perhaps more demanding than we originally expected," finance chief Axel Strotbek said.
Audi also warned that spending on new factories in Brazil and Mexico and ramp-up costs of new models such as the Q2 sport-utility vehicle will affect earnings "negatively" in 2016.
The operating margin at Volkswagen's luxury division fell to 8.3 percent from 9.6 percent, compared with 10 percent at rival Mercedes-Benz (DE:DAIGn) which last year eclipsed Audi in sales for the first time since 2010.
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