For the first quarter of 2017, the Piaggio Group posted profit before tax of 2.5 million euro, up +17.9% compared with 2.1 million euro in the first quarter of 2016, and closed the first quarter of 2017 with net profit of 1.5 million euro, an increase compared with 1.3 million euro in the first quarter of 2016.
In the first quarter of 2017, the Group sold 82,500 two-wheelers worldwide (up +10.3% from 74,800 in the year-earlier period), generating net sales of 218.9 million euro, an improvement of 5.2% from 208.2 million euro in the first quarter of 2016. The figure includes spares and accessories, on which turnover totalled 29.7 million euro, an increase of +4.6% from the year-earlier period.
Piaggio says it continued to strengthen its European two-wheeler market share, taking 14.2% of available sales (13.6% in the first quarter of 2016), and 26.4% (24.5% in the year-earlier period) in the scooter sector with a lead of almost 10 percentage points from its nearest competitor.
Highlights in the scooter sector included good results for the Vespa brand, with the Aprilia brand also performing well. Performance was also positive in high-wheel scooters, with a healthy performance in motorcycle markets thanks to a +7.1% increase in Moto Guzzi sales.
The Group maintained a particularly strong presence on the North American scooter market, with a share of 21.6%; it is also committed to strengthening its position in motorcycles in North America. In January 2017, the Piaggio Group announced the strengthening of its distribution network after reaching the important milestone of 200 Motoplex stores in Europe, the Americas, Oceania, Asia and India. Launched only two years ago, the Group multi-brand stores are in parallel and additional to their traditional outlets.
