Between falling sales and recent quality problems with its cars, Volkswagen continues to do poorly in the United States. This has not kept it from posting impressive March sales numbers. Its top position in Europe and China cannot entirely offset its struggle in America, but its leadership in those markets continue to fuel huge global sales.
The Volkswagen Group delivered 2.40 (January-March 2013: 2.27; +5.8 percent) million vehicles from January to March. Deliveries in the month of March ran at 929,500 (March 2013: 864,100; +7.6 percent)* units. “All in all, we are very satisfied with the way deliveries developed in the first three months”, Group Board Member for Sales Christian Klingler said in Wolfsburg on Friday, and added: “The positive momentum in the Asia-Pacific region continued, with China remaining the Group’s largest single market. Furthermore, there are signs of a return to modest growth on the markets in Western Europe. In terms of Group brands, Audi, ŠKODA and also SEAT recorded the highest percentage increases, with deliveries in some cases rising quite significantly.”
Group brands delivered 958,600 (881,600; +8.7 percent) vehicles on the overall European market in the first quarter, of which 516,600 (477,400; +8.2 percent) were handed over to customers in Western Europe (excluding Germany). In the home market of Germany, 282,800 (262,100; +7.9 percent) customers chose a new car from the Volkswagen Group, while Europe’s largest automaker delivered 159,200 (142,100; +12.0 percent) vehicles in the Central and Eastern Europe region. In Russia, 65,900 (67,300; -2.1 percent) customers took delivery of a new vehicle.
The company delivered 197,300 (205,700; -4.1 percent) vehicles in the North America region from January to March, of which 133,500 (142,800; -6.5 percent) were handed over in the United States. In the South America region, the Volkswagen Group delivered 168,600 (219,200; -23.1 percent) units to customers during the same period, of which 127,700 (160,600; -20.5 percent) vehicles were delivered in Brazil.
The Group continued to record very encouraging figures in the Asia-Pacific region, where 978,700 (860,700; +13.7 percent) vehicles were delivered to customers in the first quarter, of which 880,700 (769,200; +14.5 percent) units were handed over in China, the Group’s largest single market. In contrast, deliveries in India declined to 18,100 (25,900; -30.4 percent).
While most of the regional numbers are impressive, its success in China, the world’s largest car market, stands out as VW’s most impressive accomplishment.
SEE ALSO: VW Stop-Sale Order — Almost a Month’s Worth of Sales
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