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<h5>Porsche still sets the pace as Germany AG tries to recover</h5>
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By Eric Culp in Frankfurt

<span class="date">02 July 2006[/quote]</div>
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THE way things are looking, the only thing that can slow Porsche is a speed trap. The German sports car maker said this week it expects to set yet another earnings record, which would make it 12 in a row.


German managers and politicians should take note: despite farming out work to locations with cheaper labour, Porsche has retained its brand recognition, continues to bring in strong numbers and may be the prototype for the future of German industry.


The company said last week revenue and unit sales were up more than 14% in the first 10 months of the fiscal year, which ends next month. Demand for higher-cost models helped pump up sales, and the company can expect more growth next year with the introduction of the 911 Turbo and the worldwide roll-out this summer of the Cayman, a beefed-up version of the successful Boxter.


Christian Breitsprecher, cars analyst at BHF Bank in Frankfurt was succinct in his praise of the German car maker: “It has a very strong brand, and it is a very focused company.”


On the verge of bankruptcy in the early 1990s, Porsche handed the wheel to the Wendelin Wiedeking, now considered one of Germany’s best managers for turning the company around. In the decade after Wiedeking’s appointment, Porsche became what Forbes’ motoring writer last year called “the world’s best car company”.


Like many luxury products, the Porsche name is worth more than the sum of its parts, many of which come from outside Germany. The Boxter and Cayman are assembled in Finland, and body parts for the Cayenne, which is approaching the end of its product cycle, are produced at a Volkswagen plant in Bratislava. This has helped Porsche minimise its German labour force.
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