Balint Porneczi | Bloomberg | Getty Images
An employee polishes a new Citroen C1 automobile in the showroom of a PSA Peugeot Citroen dealership in Rodez, France.
Core manufacturing earnings surged to 975 million euros, lifting the divisional operating margin to 5 percent, a level not seen for more than a decade, according to the company.
Operating free cash flow rose by two-thirds to 2.792 billion euros for the period, Peugeot said.
The company nonetheless stuck to medium-term recovery goals it has already surpassed in the first half, including a 2 percent auto division margin and 2 billion euros of cumulative cash flow by 2018.
A weaker euro, falling raw material costs and other seasonal tailwinds accounted for about one-third of the operating income of 1.08 billion euros, Chief Financial Officer Jean-Baptiste de Chatillon said, adding that conditions would get tougher.
Challenges include the slowing of demand in China, he told reporters, where the company now sees full-year market growth of just 3 percent.