Emmanuel Thomas with DPA l Friday, April 21, 2023
WOLFBURG – German automotive giant Volkswagen increased global deliveries by 7.5% over the first quarter to a little over 2 million vehicles, as problems with the supply of electronic components eased, the company reported from its headquarters in Wolfsburg on Friday.
Sales in China remained weak. VW sold 14.5% fewer vehicles in its most important market. Central and Eastern European sales were also down, by 5.8%. By contrast, sales in Western Europe were up 26.9% and in North America by 22.1%.
Deliveries in China were down by as much as 40% for the month of January on its own, partly as a result of the holiday period around the Chinese New Year on January 22 and partly the effects of the pandemic.
Sales of electric vehicles across the VW Group were up by 42% to 141,000 vehicles after last year was badly affected by supply bottlenecks, the company said. The rise in Europe was even greater at 68% to 98,300 vehicles this year, compared with 58,500 in the first three months of 2022.
The group sold slightly more than a million cars under the VW brand name, up just 1% on the year. Some 70,000 electric models sold from the ID range represented around a half of all electric models.
Seat/Cupra sales were up 37%, light VW utility vehicles were up 18.7 %, Skoda sales were up 12.6% and the upmarket brands Audi and Porsche were up 7.9% and 18% respectively.
Sales of Traton buses and trucks were up by almost a quarter.
