In figures just published, Volkswagen Group has reported deliveries of 5.04 million vehicles in the first six months of 2015, down just half a per cent over the same period in 2014, but ground being made in Europe is masking a more difficult scene in other markets. Deliveries in Western Europe for the first half of the year rose by 6.9 per cent, although the rise in Germany was slightly lower with an increase year-on-year of 6.7 per cent.
Volkswagen Group's performance in Russia has dropped significantly with vehicle deliveries down by 40.9 per cent in the first six month of 2015. Another market proving challenging is South America, where deliveries dropped by 22.5 per cent overall, with Brazil reporting a larger drop of 29.6 per cent. Perhaps the market that could cause Volkswagen Group the most cause for concern is China, which is its largest single market, where deliveries have fallen by 3.9 per cent.
On a more positive note for the Group, a market it has long struggled with, the United States, has seen some small levels of growth. Deliveries there rose by 2.4 per cent in the first six months of this year, while the North American region overall saw an increase in deliveries of 6.0 per cent.
Commenting on the news, Group Board Member for Sales, Christian Klingler, said: "Overall, Volkswagen Group brands recorded satisfactory development in the first half of the year in what has in some cases been a difficult market environment. Developments in South America and Russia remain tense, as do conditions in China, where growth on the overall market has been shrinking steadily since the beginning of this year and became negative in June for the first time in several years. As the market leader, the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand in particular was not immune to these changes currently affecting the market."
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Of all the brands in the Volkswagen Group portfolio it was Volkswagen Passenger Cars that reported the second worst performance in the first half of 2015, delivering 2.95 million vehicles - a drop of 3.9 per cent compared with the same period in 2014. Only MAN trucks had a worse period, with deliveries falling by 13.5 per cent. Scania also reported a decline in deliveries by 3.7 per cent although Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles' deliveries increased by 2.4 per cent, helped by new model introductions of the popular Caddy. Porsche has played a significant role in helping Volkswagen Group paint a healthier picture by increasing global deliveries by a significant 29.8 per cent with a total of 114,000 vehicles. Audi also saw its performance improve by 3.8 per cent with over 902,400 vehicles delivered.
Also growing is Czech brand, Skoda, with 544,300 vehicles delivered, a rise of 4.2 per cent. The second half of the year could prove just as good as production of the new Superb and Superb Combi ramps up. Spanish brand, SEAT, also continues to perform well, increasing its global deliveries by 8.2 per cent.