Bentley's Half-year Sales Up by 20%

It seems that luxury cars sales are slower to pick up than the rest of the automotive industry, at least in Bentley’s case. Why so? Most carmakers are reporting better than ever monthly sales figures, however Bentley only managed to grow by 20 percent in the first six month of the year, it’s best result since 2008.

During the first half of the year, 2978 cars were delivered to customers from across the globe. The increase is largely due to strong demand in China, where sales have picked up by 57 percent from the same period of last year. In total, 680 cars have been sold in China this year, a new record for Bentley’s fastest growing market.

Europe and the Americas have also performed strongly. Europe has increased its sales by a quarter to 494 and the Americas up by 23% with 907 cars sold in the first half of 2011. The UK has continued its steady growth, up 6% with 533 cars sold, growth held back only by continuing low consumer confidence. However, Bentley continues to increase its market share in its home market.

However, the whole Asia-Pacific region was down marginally - predominantly due to the decline in the Japanese market as a result of the recent tragic natural disaster. The Middle East has also declined slightly as a result of the ongoing political unrest.

“Interest in our product range is increasing and with our largest markets achieving significant growth we are on track to meet our targets for the full year. It’s an exciting time for Bentley as we continue to invest in new product development, the results of which will be seen for months to come. With more new model launches later this year we foresee this growth continuing into 2012 and beyond,” Wolfgang Dürheimer, Bentley’s Chief Executive.