Volkswagen sees 'good start' to 2018 despite slip in profits

German car giant Volkswagen on Thursday reported a drop in profits but nonetheless said strong sales got the year off to "a good start", as new CEO Herbert Diess pushes on with a post-dieselgate revamp of the behemoth.

VW said it booked a net profit of 3.22 billion euros ($3.9 billion) between January and March, down nearly three percent on the same period a year earlier and slightly below analyst expectations.

Underlying or operating profit slipped by 3.6 percent to 4.2 billion euros, the firm said, blaming the drop mainly on accounting changes and negative currency effects.

Revenues hit 58.2 billion euros, up 3.6 percent year-on-year, as the VW group with its stable of 12 brands delivered a record 2.7 million vehicles in the first quarter.

In a statement, the Wolfsburg-based company said the year was "off to a good start".