Czech Skoda H1 unit sales at record high, sees headwinds

Reuters (Prague) - Czech Volkswagen unit Skoda Auto raised its first half global sales by 8.4 percent to a new record of 493,000 cars, the company said on Thursday.

Skoda said it had outgrown the market in most regions but saw a more difficult second half.

"The second half will not be easy. We are watching markets carefully and expect significantly stronger headwinds," Chairman Winfried Vahland said in a statement.

Skoda is a major employer and exporter in the highly trade-dependent central European country.

It said it hoped its new model line to be introduced in Europe in the autumn would help overall performance.