BERLIN (Reuters) - Porsche said on Wednesday it will keep its dividend for 2024 at the previous year's level despite a 30.4% drop in net profit, according to Reuters calculations, as the luxury carmaker battles high costs and weak demand in China.

Citing a "persistently challenging environment", the company also pared back its medium-term margin target to 15-17% from 17-19%.

Porsche's shares suffered their worst day on the stock market last month when it warned that its 2025 margin would hit just 10-12% this year because of an 800-million euro ($872.24 million) dent to profits as it pivoted back to more combustion engine and hybrid models.

The carmaker, which at its stock market debut in 2022 was valued higher than its parent company Volkswagen AG, has fallen from grace since, struggling in particular with low sales in China, its top market, where sales dropped 28% in 2024.

Like Volkswagen, which warned on Tuesday that margins would remain flat in 2025 as it battles to reduce costs, Porsche is also downsizing in an attempt to boost profitability towards its long-term target of 20%.

The luxury carmaker will cut 2,000 jobs on top of the 1,900 already announced, and will enter negotiations with unions in the second half of the year over further cuts, it said.

($1 = 0.9172 euros)