Business Development

(Condensed, in accordance with the German Commercial Code)

VEHICLE SALES

Volkswagen AG sold a total of 2,162,652 (1,882,535) vehicles in fiscal year 2023. The prior year had been impacted in particular by the limited vehicle availability due to parts supply shortages caused by the shortage of semiconductors and the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Persistent parts supply shortages had a negative effect in the reporting year and disruption in the logistics chains also led to delays, though these eased as the year progressed. Vehicles sold abroad accounted for a share of 64.1 (64.1)%.

PRODUCTION

Volkswagen AG manufactured a total of 816,016 vehicles (+22%) in the reporting year at its vehicle production plants in Wolfsburg, Hanover and Emden. Parts supply shortages restricted production in fiscal year 2023.

EMPLOYEES

As of December 31, 2023, a total of 116,063 (116,677) people were employed at the sites of Volkswagen AG, excluding staff employed at subsidiaries; of this figure, 4,374 (4,452) were vocational trainees. 7,724 (7,528) employees were in the passive phase of their partial retirement.

Female employees accounted for 18.6 (18.3)% of the workforce. Volkswagen AG employed 8,110 (7,908) part-time workers. The percentage of foreign employees was 6.4 (6.5)%. In the reporting year, 83.2 (83.3)% of the employees in Volkswagen AG’s production area had completed vocational or additional training. The proportion of graduates was 22.8 (21.9)% in the same year. The average age of employees in fiscal year 2023 was 45.1 (45.1) years.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Volkswagen AG’s research and development costs as defined in the German Commercial Code amounted to €4.7 (4.6) billion in the reporting year. 15,422 (+2.5%) people were employed in this area at the end of the reporting year.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT OF VOLKSWAGEN AG

As the parent of the Volkswagen Group, Volkswagen AG is fundamentally subject to the same expected developments and risks and opportunities. The forecast is explained in the chapter entitled “Report on Expected Developments” and the risks and opportunities in the chapter entitled “Report on Risks and Opportunities” of this annual report.

RISKS ARISING FROM FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

Risks for Volkswagen AG arising from the use of financial instruments are generally the same as those to which the Volkswagen Group is exposed. An explanation of these risks can be found in the chapter “Report on Risks and Opportunities” of this annual report.

DEPENDENT COMPANY REPORT

The Board of Management of Volkswagen AG has submitted to the Supervisory Board the report required by section 312 of AktG and issued the following concluding declaration:

“We declare that Volkswagen AG received appropriate consideration in the period from January 1 to December 31, 2023 for all transactions entered into with affiliated companies within the meaning of section 312 of the AktG. This assessment is based on the circumstances known to us at the date of the reportable transactions.”