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Porsche Opens Talks to Replace CEO Oliver Blume With Ex‑McLaren Boss Michael Leiters

The carmaker seeks to steady performance following weak China sales, sliding margins and a costly EV rethink.

Overview

  • Porsche said it will discuss a mutually agreed early termination of Oliver Blume’s Porsche CEO mandate and begin negotiations with Michael Leiters as a potential successor.
  • Any appointment would end Blume’s dual leadership of Porsche and Volkswagen, a setup that drew investor criticism during Porsche’s strategy reversals.
  • Shares rose about 1%–2% after the announcement as investors welcomed the prospective change, with DWS calling it a needed response to market concerns.
  • Porsche recently slowed parts of its EV rollout, extended combustion and hybrid lifecycles, and triggered a €5.1 billion hit at Volkswagen tied to the shift.
  • Headwinds include a 26% year‑on‑year drop in China sales for the first three quarters, a margin target cut to as low as 2% this year, job reductions of 1,900, and the stock’s removal from Germany’s DAX index.