AUTOSHOW-Audi to spend 10 bln euros in 5 years on new cars

CHIBA, Japan, Oct 24 (Reuters) Audi AG, the premium unit of Volkswagen AG, will aim to raise its global car sales to at least 1 million cars in 2008, and spend about 10 billion euros over the next five years mainly to develop vehicles to drive its growth, its chief executive said.

''We want a breakthrough next year, selling at least 1 million vehicles,'' Rupert Stadler told Reuters in an interview at the Tokyo Motor Show, adding that developing the right products, such as the new A4, was a major pillar of growth.

The maker of the TT sports coupe and Q7 luxury SUV has said that it wants to be the leading premium carmaker with annual sales of 1.5 million vehicles by 2015.

For the first nine months of 2007, Audi's global sales grew 8.3 percent to 741,000 units.

Stadler added that Audi would aim to increase profits in tandem with sales, raising its profit margin to 8 percent by 2010. Last year, it had a margin of 6.4 percent, he said.

REUTERS KR DS1428