China slump: VW, BMW deliveries fall as Bentley and Rolls-Royce decline
Volkswagen and BMW delivered significantly fewer cars in the third quarter, mainly because of China. Among luxury brands, Bentley and Rolls-Royce fell, while Lamborghini grew.
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The Volkswagen Group delivered 1.885 million vehicles in the third quarter, down 14.3% from a year earlier. Reuters said it was the steepest drop since the second quarter of 2022. Deliveries in China plunged 38.5% to 405,800 vehicles. Audi fell 19.7% and Bentley 25.5% to about 1,800 cars, while Lamborghini rose 4.1% to about 2,600. About 40% of the order book in Europe is for electric cars, VW said. Sales chief Martin Sander called "the sharp decline in the overall market in China" an industry-wide challenge.
The BMW Group delivered 551,072 vehicles in the third quarter, down 6.3%. Sales fell 24.8% in China but rose in Europe (2.7%) and the U.S. (2.5%). Rolls-Royce delivered 1,069 cars, down 18%. Electric vehicle deliveries rose 7.2% to 110,257; in Europe, more than one in three of the group's new cars was fully electric.
"In difficult market conditions, we were able to hold our own in Europe and the US," said Jochen Goller, BMW's board member for sales. Reuters cited intensifying competition from Chinese manufacturers as the cause of the decline. Mercedes-Benz and Porsche had already reported lower deliveries.