Mercedes Beats Audi on Sales Gains in Sluggish China - Bloomberg
Mercedes-Benz, the world’s third-largest maker of luxury cars, beat Audi in global deliveries in June, narrowing the gap to its rival on a 39 percent surge in China. After the first six months of 2015, Mercedes trails Audi by fewer than 4,000 cars and stands to overtake the luxury division of Volkswagen AG in full-year sales if growth trends for the two brands continue. Backed by demand for models such as the C-Class sedan, deliveries by Daimler AG’s Mercedes jumped 19 percent to 169,616 vehicles last month, while Audi sold 157,450 cars, a gain of 1. 3 percent. BMW remained in the luxury segment’s top spot in June, with sales rising 5 percent to 172,437 cars. Auto sales in China fell 3. 2 percent last month, the first decline in more than two years, as economic growth slowed and a stock-market rout weighed on consumer sentiment. Audi and Mercedes are locked in a race to displace Munich-based BMW as the world’s best-selling luxury-car brand by the end of the decade. During the first half of the year, Mercedes sales rose at almost three times the pace of BMW, gaining 15 percent to 898,425 cars. BMW AG’s namesake brand increased sales 5. 1 percent to 932,041 autos. Source: www.bloomberg.com
