Even as China continues to do brilliantly in the Asia
Pacific region, India is a slight disappointment for the Volkswagen group in
terms of vehicle sales. According to a company statement, the Group continued
to record very encouraging figures in the Asia-Pacific region, where 978,700
(860,700; +13.7pc) vehicles were delivered to customers in the first quarter,
of which 880,700 (769,200; +14.5pc) units were handed over in China, the
Group’s largest single market. In contrast, deliveries in India declined to
18,100 (25,900; -30.4pc.). Deliveries in the month of March ran at 929,500
(March 2013: 864,100; +7.6pc) units (excluding MAN and Scania.
For those not in the know, the VW Group has some great brands
under its fold that include the likes of Audi, Skoda, Bentley, Lamborghini,
Bugatti, Porsche, Ducati, MAN, Scania and SEAT.
In the first quarter of this year (January 2014 to March
2014) the group globally delivered 2.40 million vehicles as compared to 2.27
million in the corresponding period last year, thereby registering a 5.8pc
growth.
“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. He 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, Skoda and also SEAT
recorded the highest percentage increases, with deliveries in some cases rising
quite significantly.”
Group brands delivered 958,600 (881,600; +8.7pc) vehicles
on the overall European market in the first quarter, of which 516,600 (477,400;
+8.2pc) were handed over to customers in Western Europe (excluding Germany). In
the home market of Germany, 282,800 (262,100; +7.9pc) customers chose a new car
from the Volkswagen Group, while Europe’s largest automaker delivered 159,200
(142,100; +12.0pc) vehicles in the Central and Eastern Europe region. In
Russia, 65,900 (67,300; -2.1pc) 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.
Source: Volkswagen