Moses Akaigwe
Mercedes-Benz started the third quarter with a new sales record for the month of July: A total of 188,857 cars with the three-pointed star were delivered (+12.7 percent). The ongoing model changes in the high-volume compact-car segment had a positive impact on unit sales last month.
There were also significant increases in worldwide unit sales in July of the S-Class saloon (+17.7 percent), the E-Class saloon and estate (+11.1 percent) and the C-Class saloon and estate (+10.4 percent). Double-digit growth in unit sales was achieved in all regions and core markets in July. In the first seven months of the year, Mercedes-Benz defended its market leadership in the premium segment in markets including Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Japan, South Korea and Canada.
“We are very satisfied with the start to the third quarter. Thebest July of all time for Mercedes-Benz unit sales confirms our positive expectations for the coming months,” stated Britta Seeger, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Mercedes-Benz Cars Marketing and Sales. “I am delighted with the great response from customers to our new compact cars and that the improved availability of our new SUVs has already had an impact on sales. And the Mercedes-Benz luxury and full-size saloons, the S-Class and the E-Class, were also very popular in July.”
Sales by region, market. In the Europe region, 73,633 Mercedes-Benz vehicles were sold in July (+12.3 percent). Sales of 26,331 units inGermany,the domestic market, were 18.2 percent higher than in the prior-year month. With 173,682 cars with the star sold from January to July, unit sales were at the prior-year level again. Unit sales increased in July in nearly all European markets.
Compared with July 2018, double-digit growth rates were achieved in markets including France, Russia, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal and Sweden. Last month was the best-ever July inthe United Kingdom, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal, Poland, Denmark and Hungary.
A new July record was set for deliveries in the Asia-Pacific region, where 82,039 cars with the star were handed over to customers (+11.6 percent). In China, the region’s core market, the Stuttgart-based company with the three-pointed star sold 59,435 vehicles in July (+13.0 percent). Mercedes-Benz thus set new records in China for cars delivered both in July and for the first seven months of the year (404,092 units, +2.9 percent). Mercedes-Benz started the third quarter with best-ever unit sales in July also in South Korea and Australia.
In the (North American Free Trade Agreement) NAFTA region, the Stuttgart-based company with the three-pointed star posted significant growth in unit sales in July: 29,241 cars delivered representan increase of 17.5 percent compared with the prior-year month. The strong development of sales in July was primarily driven by the region’s core market, the United States, where 24,612 cars with the star were sold last month (+22.9 percent). In the first seven months of the year, sales by Mercedes-Benz in the United States totalled 172,008 vehicles (-3.8 percent), a significant improvement of sales development compared with the previous month June.
Sales by model. With sales of more than 55,000 units, the compact cars with the star recorded double-digit growth of 29.7 percent in July. Last month, the new B-Class actually achieved very strong worldwide growth of 52.7 percent. The new B-Class has been available also in Japan since July. In the first seven months of the year, more than 368,000 units of the A- and B-Class, CLA, CLA Shooting Brake and GLA were sold worldwide (+7.3 percent). The popularity of the new A-Class continues, with growth in unit sales of 33.6 percent in the months of January to July. New records were therefore set by the compact cars both for July and for the first seven months of the year.
Last month, approximately 5,800 units of the S-Class saloon were sold worldwide (+17.7 percent). This growth was driven especially by China, the biggest sales market for the Mercedes-Benz luxury