VAG group of companies sees sales increase worldwide, apart from Skoda !

• 5.9 per cent* rise in deliveries from January to May
• 816,500 units handed over in May / +6.9 per cent*
• Group Board Member for Sales Christian Klingler: “Development of Group brands is stable. Markets worldwide remain difficult and uneven.”

The Volkswagen Group delivered 3.87 (January-May 2012: 3.65; +5.9 per cent)* million vehicles from January to May. The company handed over 816,500 (May 2012: 763,900; +6.9 per cent)* vehicles to customers in the month of May. “Overall, development of the Volkswagen Group brands in the period to May was stable, albeit at different levels. In particular Audi, Volkswagen Passenger Cars and Porsche as well as SEAT maintained delivery levels in spite of continuing difficult market conditions,” Group Board Member for Sales Christian Klingler said in Wolfsburg on Friday. Klingler went on to say: “Meanwhile, developments on markets worldwide remain uneven and are characterised by continuing economic uncertainty, above all in Western Europe. In contrast, the sales situation in China remains encouraging.”

Group brands delivered a total of 1.53 (1.58; -3.5 per cent) million vehicles on the overall European market from January to May, of which 799,100 (825,800; -3.2 per cent) were handed over in Western Europe (excluding Germany). In the home market of Germany, 473,100 (493,900; -4.2 per cent) customers opted for a new vehicle. Europe’s largest automaker delivered 254,000 (262,600; -3.3 per cent) vehicles in Central and Eastern Europe. 120,900 (122,500; -1.3 per cent) units were handed over to customers in Russia during the same period.

Deliveries in the North America region from January to May grew by 13.0 per cent to 360,000 (318,700) units, of which 249,300 (224,100; +11.2 per cent) were handed over in the United States. In South America, the Volkswagen Group delivered 375,400 (376,700; -0.4 per cent) vehicles to customers during the same period, of which 276,300 (273,000; +1.2 per cent) were handed over to customers in Brazil.

Group figures for the Asia-Pacific region remained encouraging. 1.43 (1.23; +16.4 per cent) million vehicles were handed over to customers there in the period to May, of which 1.28 (1.08; +18.2 per cent) million units were delivered in China, the Group’s largest single market. In contrast, deliveries in India dropped to 41,300 (51,700; -20.2 per cent) vehicles.

Outline of developments at Group brands

The Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand delivered 2.41 (2.29; +5.3 per cent) million vehicles to customers worldwide from January to May. The brand developed well in the Asia-Pacific region, handing over 1.07 (0.91; +17.6 per cent) million vehicles there. In the North America region, Volkswagen Passenger Cars delivered 252,700 (242,100; +4.4 per cent) models, while deliveries on the overall European market, which remained difficult, ran at 688,900 (743,000; -7.3 per cent).

Audi delivered 640,200 (600,200; +6.7 per cent) vehicles to customers worldwide in the period to May. Deliveries by the premium brand from Ingolstadt developed well in the Asia-Pacific region, where 218,500 (189,000; +15.6 per cent) models were handed over to customers. In the North America region, Audi delivered 73,600 (64,000) vehicles during the same period, an increase of 14.9 per cent.

The sports car manufacturer Porsche, which became a Volkswagen Group brand on August 1, 2012, delivered a total of 67,300 vehicles in the first five months. Demand for models built by the Stuttgart-based carmaker was especially high in the Asia-Pacific region, where 20,000 vehicles were delivered, and in the North America region, where 19,400 models were handed over to customers.

ŠKODA delivered a total of 377,200 (405,500; -7.0 per cent) vehicles from January to May. The Czech automaker handed over 96,700 (107,600; -10.1 per cent) units in Central and Eastern Europe and 111,600 (120,900; -7.7 per cent) vehicles in the Asia-Pacific region.

SEAT delivered 149,100 (134,300; +11.0 per cent) vehicles worldwide in the period to May, thus continuing the upward trend. The Spanish brand recorded growth above all in Germany, where deliveries increased by 30.9 per cent to 30,700 (23,500) units, in the UK, where the company handed over 18,500 (16,500; +12.6 per cent) vehicles to customers, and in Mexico, where deliveries ran at 9,200 (8,500; +8.2 per cent) models.

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles delivered 219,900 (220,600; -0.3 per cent) vehicles to customers from January to May, of which 66,800 (67,100; -0.5 per cent) units were handed over in Western Europe (excluding Germany). In contrast, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles grew deliveries in the South America region by 10.9 per cent to 61,800 (55,700) units.

*) including deliveries by the Porsche brand from August 1, 2012; excluding MAN and Scania