Volkswagen Shares Rise After Audit Finds No Evidence of Forced Labor in China

By David Sachs

Volkswagen shares rose Wednesday after a review of practices at a jointly owned site in China found no evidence of human-rights violations.

At 1121 GMT, shares in the German car company were up 3.2% at EUR112.02.

The audit was commissioned by Volkswagen and performed by a Shenzhen law firm with Loehning, a German human-rights consultancy. It included document checks, staff interviews and inspections at a plant co-owned by Volkswagen and SAIC Motor in Xinjiang, Volkswagen said. The audit found no violations of forced-labor or child-labor regulations according to United Nations standards.

The findings could open the door for investors who were previously unable to invest in Volkswagen, Citi analysts said in a note.

"We think this could reverse a significant proportion of the VW underperformance since July 2022," the analysts said.

Write to David Sachs at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

12-06-23 0651ET