Mercedes-Benz continues double-digit sales growth course in May

• In May, 134,031 customers opted for a Mercedes-Benz vehicle (+10.4%).
• Ola Källenius: “We have set another sales record by achieving double-digit growth in May.”
• Especially the C-Class and the GLA are proving popular with customers.
• Mercedes-Benz continues to be market leader in Germany, Japan and many other markets.
• Gain of market shares in Europe

Mercedes-Benz has continued the trend in recent months by achieving yet another sales record in May. A total of 134,031 vehicles were sold to customers around the world (+10.4%). That makes 641,384 vehicles sold since the start of the year (+14.0%), also more than ever before during this period.

“We have set another sales record by achieving double-digit growth in May,” said Ola Källenius, Member of the Divisional Board Mercedes-Benz Cars responsible for Marketing & Sales. “End of May we celebrated the international debut of the C-Class estate in Bremen – a vehicle that will particularly appeal to customers in Europe.”

In Europe, 60,529 customers opted for a Mercedes-Benz vehicle in May (+4.8%). The cars with the star were in particular demand in the UK, where 10,093 units were sold in May (+22.3%). In Germany Mercedes-Benz sold 21,785 vehicles (py. 22,382 units) and was the most registered premium brand in May.

In the US, the company’s largest sales market, sales rose 7.7% to 26,617 vehicles. American customers particularly liked the S-Class and E-Class models. The sales figures for Canada were up 5.1% with 2,964 vehicles handed over to customers.

The Mercedes-Benz brand put in a successful performance in the Asian market as well. A total of 23,011 units were delivered in China during May (+30.1%). Chinese dealerships now also offer the CLA. The compact coupe has been on China’s roads since the end of April. Particularly strong percentage gains in unit sales were seen in South Korea (+49.0%), Taiwan (+21.8%) and India (+28.3%).

Among the various Mercedes-Benz model series, the compact cars continued to perform well in May. The company sold a total of 37,895 A-, B-, CLA- and GLA-Class vehicles worldwide (+19.3%), with 173,318 units since the start of the year (+24.5%).

The E-Class models continue to develop strongly. In May the company saw sales of the sedan and estate versions rise by 24.5% to 22,535 units sold. The growth rate for the coupe and cabriolet of the E-Class was around 30% in May, with both models selling the most units in their segment.

The strongest growth rates were recorded by the brand’s flagship, the S-Class. A total of 8,353 customers took over an S-Class sedan, almost twice as many as in the same month last year. The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is the best-selling luxury sedan in the world.

A total of 20,696 C-Class vehicles were handed over to customers in the last month (py. 27,211 units). In the middle of the month, the East London Mercedes-Benz plant in South Africa became the second location after Bremen (Germany) to start production of the new C-Class. The new model is the brand’s only vehicle to be produced on four continents, with production in China (Beijing) and the US (Tuscaloosa) set to start within the next two months. The new C-Class sedan has been available in Europe since March, and the estate is set to follow in September.

A total of 29,846 Mercedes-Benz SUVs were handed over to customers in May (+16.1%). Since the start of the year, the company has already sold 136,107 off-road vehicles.

The Mercedes-Benz V-Class has been available at German dealerships since end of May and throughout Europe since early June. This multi-purpose vehicle is part of the Mercedes-Benz product initiative.

In May, 7,657 customers opted for a smart fortwo, the company’s smallest model (py. 8,680 units). The compact city runabout is very popular mainly in big cities and is therefore also used for the station-independent car sharing service car2go. Since mid-May, 200 smart fortwos have also been available for spontaneous short-term rentals in the city of Florence. car2go is therefore present in three Italian cities (the other two being Rome and Milan). Italy is the second-largest sales market for the smart after Germany.

Overview of sales by Mercedes-Benz Cars

	May 2014	Change in %	Per May 2014	Change in %
Mercedes-Benz	134,031	+10.4	641,384	+14.0
smart	7,657	-11.8	39,481	-8.3
Mercedes-Benz Cars	141,688	+9.0	680,865	+12.4
Mercedes-Benz Sales in the Markets
Europe	60,529	+4.8	279,556	+5.5
- thereof Germany	21,785	-2.7	102,217	+2.9
NAFTA	30,303	+6.8	141,519	+6.1
- thereof USA	26,617	+7.7	125,118	+6.5
Asia/Pacific	37,071	+20.7	190,459	+33.9
- thereof Japan	3,059	-22.4	23,179	+25.1
- thereof China	23,011	+30.1	112,507	+41.8