PARIS — Renault posted a plunge in first-quarter revenue and said it’s too early to judge the impact the coronavirus pandemic will have on its earnings this year.
Revenue fell 19 percent to 10.1 billion euros ($10.9 billion), the company said in a statement on Thursday.
Renault is seeking billions in government-backed loans from the French state, its most powerful shareholder, which has pledged to help. To clear the way, Renault scrapped its dividend earlier this month.
Renault said it had 10.3 billion euros ($11 billion) of liquidity reserves, as of the end of March, 5.5 billion euros ($5.9 billion) less than at the end of 2019. The first quarter is traditionally a period when automakers use cash to bump up stocks.
Renault’s vehicle sales in Europe fell 36 percent, compared with a 26 percent decline in the market. The low-cost Dacia brand showed the biggest drop.
Renault sold more cars in Russia than in its French home market in the January-March period, the first time that France has slid from the top spot.
However, the automaker slightly benefited from a price effect on sales after launching more expensive SUVs such as the new Renault Captur, but this was not sufficient to offset tumbling volumes.
The sales slump shows the deep hole that the automaker, and much of the industry, finds itself in after the pandemic closed plants and showrooms.
