The Volkswagen Group (includes Volkswagen, Skoda, Audi, Bentley, Porsche, Lamborghini and Seat) delivered 2.5 million vehicles to customers from January to March 2016. Despite the mega diesel gate scandal and its aftereffects, VW managed to have a 0.8 per cent rise in sales over the same period last year.
Volkswagen delivered 447,600 vehicles to customers in Europe in March, an increase of 2.7 per cent compared to the previous year. While developments in Western Europe were positive, there was a slight decrease in the home market of Germany (-2.5 per cent). The markets in Central and Eastern Europe also recorded good growth in this period (+8.8 per cent), but the continued tense situation in Russia (-3.3 per cent) had an impact.
The company handed over 201,500 vehicles in the North America region in the first quarter. 49,900 new vehicles (-3.7 per cent) were delivered in the USA, the region’s largest single market, in March. The Asia-Pacific region recorded solid growth in the first quarter with 1,045,400 units sold. 955,500 vehicles were handed over to customers in China in the first quarter, representing an increase of 6.4 per cent compared with the prior year. A total of 328,000 vehicles were delivered in March.
Volkswagen, as we know, is still suffering from the aftermath of the mega scandal wherein the brand was caught rigging cars with cheat software to pass diesel emissions tests. As a result, the brand has been struggling to put things back in place. This also explains the steady decline in sales in certain markets including Germany and USA.
