FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Volkswagen, Europe’s top carmaker, on Friday said it expects sales growth to slow in 2024 compared to last year, citing increasing competition, stricter emissions regulation as well as raw materials and energy prices.

The company expects sales to grow by up to 5% in 2024, after reporting a 15.5% increase last year to 322.3 billion euros ($348.5 billion).

Volkswagen’s Chief Financial Officer Arno Antlitz pointed to a “muted economic outlook and intense competition” but said the carmaker was confident for the year as a whole.

Shares in Volkswagen turned negative on the annual results, which included a drop in the operating margin to 7.0% in 2023 from 7.9% in the previous year, and traded 5.7% lower at 1415 GMT.

($1 = 0.9249 euros)

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz, Editing by Rachel More)