The Volkswagen Group delivered 7.85 (January-October 2012: 7.50; +4.7 percent)* million vehicles from January to October. The company handed over 818,900 (October 2012: 788,800; +3.8 percent)* vehicles to customers in October. “The Volkswagen Group started the fourth quarter with a solid rise in deliveries. That confirms our forecast for record deliveries of 9.5 million vehicles for the full year”, Group Board Member for Sales Christian Klingler said in Wolfsburg on Friday. He added that developments on markets worldwide remained mixed and characterized by economic uncertainty, particularly in Western Europe. Klinger continued: “Nevertheless, we are seeing the first signs that the markets in France and Spain as well as Italy are stabilizing. The delivery situation in China remains very encouraging, with some Group brands recording significant increases there.”
The Group brands delivered a total of 3.05 (3.10; -1.8 percent) million vehicles to customers on the overall European market from January to October, of which 1.56 (1.57; -1.1 percent) million units were handed over in Western Europe (excluding Germany). In the home market of Germany, 963,600 (994,500; -3.1 percent) customers took possession of a new vehicle. In the Central and Eastern Europe region, Europe’s largest automaker delivered 526,200 (534,600; -1.6 percent) units. 250,700 (262,200; -4.4 percent) vehicles were delivered to customers in Russia during the same period.
In the North America region, deliveries from January to October grew by 7.8 percent to 734,200 (681,200) vehicles, of which 508,300 (481,100; +5.7 percent) were delivered in the United States. The Volkswagen Group handed over 758,000 (841,500; -9.9 percent) vehicles to customers in the South America region during the same period, of which 561,900 (644,000; -12.7 percent) were delivered in Brazil.
Delivery figures for the Asia-Pacific region remained very encouraging. 2.95 (2.56; +15.6 percent) million vehicles were handed over to customer there in the period to October, of which 2.65 (2.26; +17.2 percent) million were delivered in China, the region’s largest single market. In contrast, deliveries in India declined to 79,200 (94,900; -16.6 percent) units.
Outline of developments at Group brands
The Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand delivered 4.88 (4.72; +3.4 percent) million vehicles to customers worldwide from January to October. The brand developed well in the Asia-Pacific region, handing over 2.20 (1.89; +16.2 percent) million units to customers there. Volkswagen Passenger Cars delivered 513,100 (508,500; +0.9 percent) vehicles in North America and 1.37 (1.44; -5.3 percent) million vehicles on the overall European market where conditions remained difficult.
Audi delivered 1.31 (1.22; +7.5 percent) million vehicles worldwide in the period to October. The premium brand from Ingolstadt developed well in the Asia-Pacific region where 470,700 (393,500; +19.6 percent) models were handed over to customers. Audi delivered 154,200 (136,600) vehicles in the North America region during the same period, an increase of 12.9 percent.
The sports car manufacturer Porsche, which became a Volkswagen Group brand on August 1, 2012, delivered a total of 133,100 vehicles in the first ten months. Demand for vehicles built by the Stuttgart-based carmaker was particularly high in the Asia-Pacific region, where 40,300 units were delivered, and in the North America region, where 38,800 vehicles were handed over to customers.
ŠKODA delivered a total of 768,700 (795,100; -3.3 percent) vehicles from January to October. The Czech automaker recorded stable development in Western Europe (excluding Germany), where it delivered 191,900 (191,700; +0.1 percent) units. The company handed over 204,400 (214,900; -4.9 percent) vehicles to customers in Central and Eastern Europe.
SEAT delivered 295,100 (265,200; +11.3 percent) vehicles worldwide from January to October, thus continuing its upward trend. The Spanish brand developed particularly well in Germany, where deliveries rose by 25.4 percent to 64,100 (51,200) units, and in the UK, where the company handed over 38,300 (33,700; +13.8 percent) vehicles to customers.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles delivered 454,800 (455,400; -0.1 percent) vehicles from January to October, of which 133,200 (134,000; -0.6 percent) units were handed over to customers in Western Europe (excluding Germany). In contrast, deliveries grew by 9.8 percent in the South America region, where Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles handed over 133,200 (121,300) vehicles to customers.
*) including deliveries by the Porsche brand from August 1, 2012; excluding MAN and Scania