The Logan model, considered a 'low-cost' brand, posted a profit margin much higher than all other Renault models in 2007, and generated not only higher sales, but also significant profits, said Carlos Ghosn, the chairman of the French group that owns Romania's biggest carmaker.

"The Logan programme has a 6% operating margin on foreign markets, and in Romania this figure is 8%. We have achieved a 3.3% operating margin for the entire group, above expectations, but Logan posted a much higher profitability. This proves that low-cost cars do not necessarily mean low profit margins," Ghosn stated in Paris yesterday when 2007 financial results were revealed.

The 8% operating margin could place the Romanian carmaker among the most profitable in the world, as this is a value close to carmakers such as Nissan and Porsche, which derive renowned profitability on a global scale. "We need to convince the market that Logan will not just boost its volume, but also its profit. Low-cost cars are not necessarily low-profit cars," Ghosn pointed out.

Automobile Dacia last year manufactured more than 215,000 Logan cars, an increase of 21.6% on 2006, with more than 121,000 units delivered to foreign markets. The representatives of the Renault group did not reveal the Romanian carmaker's financial results, however, according to the estimates based on the growth rate, Automobile Dacia's business could have gone beyond the 2 billion-euro mark in 2007. The company had posted net profit worth 100 million euros in the previous year, alongside turnover worth 1.56 billion euros.

Automobile Dacia will reveal its new logo during next month's Geneva Auto Show, and will also showcase the new model based on the Renault Sandero platform, which is currently assembled in Brazil.

"Dacia has evolved, we now have a complete range of models and it was time to change the brand ima