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PARIS, April 29 (Reuters) - French carmaker Renault aims to maintain or bolster its market share in Europe this year and is targeting an operating profit margin of around four percent, its chairman confirmed on Tuesday.
Chairman Louis Schweitzer also reiterated at the company's annual shareholder meeting that he expected a one to two percent dip in the western European car market this year, or as much as six to seven percent in a worst-case scenario.
When asked about the firm's target of notching up an operating profit of around four percent of sales, compared to 4.1 percent last year, Schweitzer told reporters: "You can take the statement I gave (at the presentation of full-year results) and I'll confirm it all."
Sales and Marketing director Francois Hinfray told shareholders said that even though sales of Renault cars fell in the first quarter, the worst was over and that its order book was sturdier now than it was at the end of April in 2002.
"From May, our market share will increase sequentially month on month," said Hinfray. "Our goal of matching or beating last year's market share is quite feasible."
Europe's fourth largest carmaker last week posted a 2.9 percent fall in first-quarter sales as a clutch of flash new cars failed to offset sagging demand for older models as well as a weak European market.
It has stressed that sales will improve in the second half after it launches a new version of its crucial money-spinner -- the Scenic minivan -- and rolls out more versions of its popular and quirky Megane.
Schweitzer reiterated that sales of the Megane, with its avant-garde cutaway back-end, were beating the firm's expectations, but declined to give figures.
Since February, when Renault predicted the European market would slip by up to two percent, or six to seven percent in a worst-case scenario, there had been positive and negative developments that have impacted demand, he said.
"The good news is that the war in Iraq is over and did not trigger an oil price spike. The bad news is that European growth is not picking up," said Schweitzer. "Most economists reckon the second half will be better than the first, so the two hypotheses (for the car market) remain valid."
Hinfray said that the awkward and ill-fated Avantime model, which Renault scrapped after just a year, had cost the company a total of 150 million euros, and that 50 million euros of that had not yet been accounted for.
When asked about Renault's ambitions in the Middle East, Schweitzer said it had plans for a "quite substantial project" to make cars in Iran, but did not give details.
Schweitzer also announced that the chairman of the firm's Japanese partner Nissan Yoshikazu Hanawa would step down as board member of the French firm when he left his post at Nissan on June 19.
Shares in Renault dropped 1.45 percent to 37.30 euros by close of play, while the European DJ Stoxx Autos index shed 0.32 percent.