Category Archives: sales

Mercedes-Benz Posts Global Sales Record in May

Mercedes-Benz in May 2012 delivered 113,136 vehicles, + 4% compared to the record figure for 2011. Year-to-date 531,382 units or +8.4% have been delivered globally, the earliest in a year the 500,000 threshold has been crossed. Continue reading

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Japanese Big 3 – Toyota, Honda, Nissan – Sales Up in May

Toyota Motor came close to displacing Ford Motor from its assumed Number 2 spot in the U.S. by posting monthly sales of 202,973 – within a rounding error of Ford’s 215,699 and firmly putting Toyota in the Number 3 sales spot for the year-to-date. The other Japanese powerhouse members were also back in shape. American Honda posted sales of 134,000 (576,000 ytd) easily ahead of the Nissan at 92,000 (485,000 ytd). With a new Accord and Altima due this fall, the family car market is about to becomes more competitive than it has been in years, which is good for buyers but might leave weaker and older entries as road kill. Continue reading

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Chrysler, Ford and GM Post Best U.S. May Sales in Years. But…

Chrysler, Ford and GM posted the best May sales in years today as the U.S. auto market continued its slow recovery to what looks to be shaping up as a 14 million unit year – the best since the collapse of the economy under the waning years of the Bush Administration. In terms of numbers, GM once again led with sales of 245,000 light cars and trucks – it’s highest in 33 months, followed by Ford Motor (209,000) and Chrysler Group (150,000). The market appears to be slipping away from Ford and General Motors, though. Only Chrysler Group at 689,000 year-to-date for a 33% increase outraced industry growth of 13%. Ford Motor up 6.5% (933,000) and GM up a mere 2% at 1,067,000 badly lagged the auto sale expansion. Continue reading

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Ford Stays Number Two in May Sales Ahead of Toyota by 6,000

Whether Ford can retain the Number Two spot as it converts plants to build the new 2013 Fusion and Escape as well as the Lincoln MKZ remains to be seen. Ford is capacity restrained and during May it could have sold more of ‘high demand” vehicles such as the Ford Fusion. Continue reading

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April Japanese Automaking Surges with $13 Billion in Exports

The strong recovery is bad news for the Detroit Three since many of the vehicles will be shipped to North America, by far the largest export market for Japanese automakers. More than 157,000 vehicles were shipped to North America, with 140,000 of those sent the United States, where the new vehicle market is slowly growing once again. Continue reading

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EU Commercial Vehicle Sales Drop 12% in April

Unlike the car market in Europe, which is in its fifth straight year of declining sales year-over-year, the commercial vehicle market was posting small gains until about a year ago. The declines since then are an ominous sign that EU economic problems are deepening as voters are turning out existing governments and demanding economic stimulus packages from new or surviving ruling elites. Expanding debt ridden national economies has thus far have been resisted mostly by the German government, which has a relatively stronger economy keeping it in power for the moment. Continue reading

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May U.S. Auto Sales Projected Close to 1.4 Million Vehicles

Total light-vehicle sales in May are predicted at 1,384,000 units, a 21% percent increase from May 2011. However, fleet volume as a percentage of total light-vehicle sales is expected to remain high in May, at 22%. Continue reading

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Milestones – Toyota Motor Sells 4 Million Hybrid Vehicles

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) in Japan announced today that its global hybrid vehicle sales totaled four million vehicles through April 2012. of that 1.5 million Toyota hybrids have been sold in the United States where it dominates the advanced technology vehicle market by outselling all other hybrid and electric vehicles combined. Toyota in the U.S. now holds 65% of the hybrid market, with the Prius a line accounting for 1.2 million vehicles year-to-date. Continue reading

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April EU Cars Sales Down Again as Eurozone Crisis Continues

In April, 1,017,912 new passenger cars were registered in the EU, or 6.9% fewer than in the same month of 2011. For the first four months of the year, new registrations were 7.5% lower in the EU than a year earlier at 4,332,342 units. This means the EU remains on track for the fifth straight year of sales declines, an economic disaster that has potential negative effects on Fiat, Ford Motor and General Motors in North America. Continue reading

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Opel Woes Continue as EU Auto Sales Decline In April. Latest Turnaround Plan Faces Fierce Union Fight over Plant Closings

Worrisome for GM shareholders, including the U.S. taxpayers who still own 32% of the world’s largest, but only marginally profitable, automaker after a $50 billion bailout, Stracke told employees that Opel will stay with existing labor agreements through 2014. With the European auto market headed for its fifth straight year of sales declines and with no upturn predicted for years, it’s impossible to see how Opel will cease being a drag on GM earnings. Continue reading

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Ford Europe Sales Down 10% in April. UK and Eastern EU Up

Like other automakers, Ford is struggling with the contractionist policies of governments in Germany and Brussels, as voter unrest grows with the Depression level economic conditions. Both in April and year-to-date light vehicle sales in the EU are off almost 8%, the fifth straight year of declines. Continue reading

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Nissan Posts Operating Profit of ¥45.8 Billion For F.Y. 2011

The Nissan results with a net of $4.32 billion was in sharp contrast to Toyota Motor Corporation’s F.Y. net profit decline to ¥283.56 billion or $3.6 billion, a -31% decrease. Nissan also out performed Honda Motor whose net profit declined slightly at ¥211.4 ($2.627 billion) for a -3.5% drop. Continue reading

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Volkswagen Group April Sales at 732,000 are Up 6%

The Volkswagen Group in Wolfsburg today said sales increased for the month of April to 732,000 vehicles. Compared to April 2011 at 690,800, this represented a 6% gain. Year-to-date VW Group sold 2.89 million vehicles for an increase of 8.6% percent (January-April 2011: 2.66 m). Europe’s largest automaker and the Number Two Global automaker behind General Motors outperformed the overall market, which grew by 6% during the year.
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Ford China Sales Rebound in April with 24% Gain

After three straight months of declining sales in China, Ford Motor said today that sales increased 24% year-over-year to 54,881 based on wholesale deliveries. Ford China has now sold 176,274 vehicles year-to-date in China. Market leader General Motors and its communist government required joint ventures in China set a domestic sales record for April of 227,217 vehicles. Demand was up 11.7% from the same month in 2011. Its performance in April took GM’s sales for the first four months of the year to 972,369 units, an increase of 9.4% on an annual basis. GM has now sold more than one million vehicles in China. Continue reading

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BMW Group Posts Record Sales, Revenues, Earnings in Q1

The BMW Group recorded record sales, revenues and earning during Q1 2012, as the number of vehicles sold by the Group rose by 11.2% to 425,528 units from 382,758 during Q1 of 2011. The BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce brands all recorded new sales records. This included BMW brand motorcycles at 24,373, +5.5%, which was also the best Q1 sales performance in the company’s history. Continue reading

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