FRANKFURT: Embattled German carmaker Volkswagen said Friday that worldwide sales of its own-brand cars were down 1.3 percent in the first three months of this year, with gains seen only in the Asia-Pacific region and in central and eastern Europe.
Volkswagen, currently entrenched in a massive engine-rigging scandal, said in a statement that it sold 1.459 million VW-brand vehicles in the period from January to March, down from 1.479 million a year earlier.
“Mixed regional market developments are reflected in our delivery figures,” said Juergen Stackmann, head of sales at the VW brand. “While Volkswagen Passenger Cars recorded the best delivery performance ever in China in the first quarter, the trend in South America in particular continues to decline,” Stackmann said.
In the group’s home market of Germany, VW delivered a total 138,700 of its own-brand cars to customers in the January-March period, 3.8 percent fewer than a year earlier.
