BERLIN -- Continental reported a 5 percent adjusted earnings margin in 2022 in preliminary figures released on Tuesday, towards the lower end of its outlook, with sales of 39.4 billion euros ($42.55 billion).
The supplier had said in November it expected to hit the upper end of its adjusted earnings forecast but warned the business environment was highly volatile.
Continental had also warned it expected to pass more energy and labor costs onto customers in the coming year.
In the automotive sector, which began to see recovery in the third quarter after a turbulent first half amid lockdowns in China and war in Ukraine, the adjusted earnings margin was -0.2 percent for the year, but the fourth quarter was stronger with a 2.1 percent margin.
In the tires sector, the company reported a 13.1 percent annual margin but a slightly lower fourth-quarter margin at 10.3 percent.
Higher production costs and restrictions in China due to COVID-19 pushed down margins in the ContiTech group sector, reaching 4.7 percent for the year, below the forecast of 6 percent to 7 percent.
The company said lower than expected cash flow resulted in adjusted free cash flow of around 200 million euros, far below its forecast of 600 million to 800 million euros.
Continental will release full results for the year on March 8.
Continental ranks No. 8 on the Automotive News Europe list of top 100 global suppliers, with 2021 sales to automakers of $22.4 billion.
