Maserati won't see profits until after product offensive starts in 2020

Losses have deepened for troubled Maserati, which will not return to profitability before 2020 after its next product offensive starts, executives at parent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said. The luxury car brand plans to debut 10 new or revised models between 2020 and 2023.

Maserati posted a 119 million euro ($132 million) loss as it cut production to reduce dealer stocks by 3,000 vehicles and wrote down residual values in the U.S. Those two actions weighed heavily on Maserati during the quarter (see box, below).

Maserati slashed shipments to dealers 46 percent to 4,200 cars in the second quarter while unit sales declined 17 percent to 7,200 vehicles.

FCA Chief Financial Officer Richard Palmer said dealer stocks of Maserati’s aging lineup would be reduced further during the second half of 2019. By year-end, the automaker wants to have enough supply to cover two to two-and-a-half months, down from five months at the end of 2018.

FCA CEO Mike Manley called Maserati's sales volume "disappointing," and said the third and fourth quarters would also be difficult for the brand before things improve next year.

On the bright side, Maserati’s Q2 unit sales decline was an improvement on the 32 percent slide during in the first three months of this year and was the brand’s smallest drop in the last 10 quarters. Margins in North America also improved in the second quarter, Manley added.