BERLIN Porsche reported falling first-half sales and profits on Wednesday, a day after cutting its outlook for the remainder of the year on a supply chain shortage which it expects will dent its output by more than 10,000 cars.

Shares in the company were 2% higher, recovering some losses made on Tuesday after it disclosed the impact of the shortage at a European aluminium supplier.

Porsche said the cut to supplies would affect production of all its models and possibly lead it to shut down one more vehicle series.

Shares in Porsche, a Volkswagen AG subsidiary that listed on the stock market just under two years ago, have slipped since last May as a string of setbacks from software problems to launch delays and weakening sales in China shook investor confidence.

This has increased pressure on Oliver Blume, whose double role as CEO of both Porsche AG and Volkswagen has already stoked concerns over whether one individual can lead two German blue-chip companies.

Analysts had questioned on Tuesday why the carmaker had failed to secure alternative aluminium supply when its European provider was hit by flooding in June.

"While these things can happen in the auto land, this does come on top of various other supply chains issues in the past quarters, stressing the trust in the operational execution once again," Tim Rokossa of Deutsche Bank said.

Porsche's operating profits fell by just over a fifth in the first half to €3.06 billion (US$3.32 billion or RM15.5 billion), it said on Wednesday, with sales down 4.8% to €19.46 billion.

Its operating return on sales was 15.7%, just above the reduced outlook for the year announced on Tuesday of 14-15%.

Updates to five out of six model lines, including the Panamera, Taycan and 911, in the first half were impacting sales, inventories, and research and development costs, the company said.

Other companies including Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin have also warned sales would take a hit this year due to model launches and revamps, as carmakers attempt to make their EV offerings more attractive while also keeping their combustion engine cars competitive.

  - Reuters