Brembo Reports Decline in Revenue and Profit Amidst Geopolitical Instability

On July 29, Italian brake system manufacturer Brembo announced that its revenue for the first half of the year reached €1.881 billion, a decrease of 6.2% year-on-year. Due to adverse factors in the European and North American automotive sectors, its EBITDA dropped by 14.4% to €300.9 million, while EBIT fell by 25.8% to €162.4 million. Net profit also saw a significant decline of 37.4% to €97.9 million. Matteo Tiraboschi, Executive Chairman of Brembo, stated in a press release, "The geopolitical situation remains extremely unstable, and the crisis in the automotive market continues, especially in Europe and North America." Despite these challenges, Brembo has confirmed its financial projections for the full year 2025, expecting revenue to remain flat compared to 2024, provided that the geopolitical environment stabilizes in the second half of this year, with an EBITDA margin expected to exceed 16%. Brembo also highlighted that its total investment for 2025 is projected to reach €400 million, with net debt expected to be around €780 million. Additionally, in the first half of the year, Brembo's sales costs and other net operating costs amounted to €1.1923 billion, accounting for 63.4% of sales, a slight decrease from 64.4% (or €1.2901 billion) in the same period last year. Personnel costs rose to €393.1 million, making up 20.9% of sales, compared to 18.5% (or €371.4 million) in the previous year. Net investments reached €199.8 million, with €13.9 million coming from an increase in leased assets. As of June 30, 2025, Brembo had a total workforce of 16,059, which includes 445 employees from the newly acquired Swedish suspension system manufacturer Ohlins Racing, down from 16,196 employees on March 31, 2025. Last October, Brembo announced its agreement to acquire 100% of Ohlins Racing for $405 million, marking its largest acquisition to date. Notably, as of June 30, 2025, Brembo's net financial debt stood at €935.5 million, an increase of €321.9 million compared to June 30, 2024, though net financial debt decreased by €44 million when excluding the acquisition of Ohlins Racing. Brembo's clients include major automotive brands such as Porsche, Audi, BMW, and Lamborghini. Currently, European automakers are struggling to cope with trade tensions and competition from Chinese manufacturers, which have reached new highs in market share within Europe, squeezing the survival space of multiple European automotive brands.