Volkswagen Group Reports a 24.6 Increase in Worldwide Sales

The Volkswagen Group reported sales of 1.73 million vehicles worldwide in the first three months of 2010, up 24.6 percent compared with the same period last year. "There are clear signs of a revival on the overall passenger car market in many parts of the world. Thanks to our innovative, young and environmentally-friendly models we are benefiting quite significantly from this trend," said Christian Klingler, Group Board Member for Sales in a press release.

The largest market for the VW group was China, with 457,300 units sold, which represents a considerable increase of 60.9 percent. It was also the fastest growing market for Volkswagen Group. In the countries of Europe, the German auto giant sold 837,100 vehicles, an increase of 13.5 percent. 753,600 of these were sold in Western Europe.

The most succesful brand of the group was Volkswagen passenger cars, with 1.11 million units sold worldwide in Q1, up 27 percent compared to the first three months of 2009. The Golf was by far the most popular model, with 164,500 units, followed by Polo, with 132,900 units.

VW’s luxury brand Audi reported global sales of 264,100 units in Q1 (up 25.9 percent) the strongest first-quarter performance in the company’s history. In China, the market with the highest growth, the brand from Ingolstadt delivered 51,400 units, up 77.3 percent compared to Q1 last year.

Skoda too enjoyed a good first quarter, with 178,900 units delivered worldwide, which accounts for a 25 percent increase. Spanish brand SEAT also grew deliveries to 88,300 units, up 15.1 percent compared with the first three months of 2009. Most of the company’s sales were in Western Europe (78,500 units).