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June 11, 2003
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This Week:

• First 2004 Ford F-150 Rolls Off Assembly Line Into History

• THE HIRE Inducted Into MOMA Permanent Collection

• DaimlerChrysler builds new technology centre for vans at the Untertürkheim plant

• Volkswagen added two new V6 TDI engines to the Passat.

• Changes in Chrysler Group Management

• Toyota Announces Best-Ever Sales Month

• Saab Further Strengthens Global Competitiveness With Two Significant Executive Advancements

• Jaguar To Premiere New V6 Diesel Engine

• Buick Slam? Tiger Woods Aims To Win Third Of Three Buick Golf Titles In New York

• Mercedes Car Group: More Than 500,000 Passenger Cars Sold Worldwide through May 2003

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Mercedes Car Group: More Than 500,000 Passenger Cars Sold Worldwide through May 2003
 

Mercedes-Benz bolsters its market share in the U.S., Western Europe and Asia E-Class and S-Class once again make major gains smart sales climb 13 percent in May compared with same-month totals in 2002 Stuttgart - Despite the weak automotive market around the world Mercedes Car Group was still able to maintain a high level of sales. It sold a total of 108,400 automobiles in May 2003 (May 2002: 108,100). Mercedes-Benz sold worldwide 96,900 passenger cars during May, compared with 97,800 in the same month last year. smart achieved a 13-percent boost in sales to 11,500 vehicles in May. Sales in Western Europe excluding Germany played a significant role in this performance, bucking the market trend and rising 37 percent.

From January through May 2003, Mercedes Car Group maintained a stable sales level in an unfavorable economic environment, with a total of 510,200 passenger cars sold (January through May 2002: 513,500). In the first five months of the year, 49,500 customers purchased smart models (2002: 50,200). Through May, Mercedes-Benz sold 460,700 vehicles, compared with 463,300 in the same period of last year.

The E-Class remained a dominant force in the company's product line-up: 111,200 of the sedans were sold in the first five months of 2003. That figure amounts to a worldwide market share of approximately 40 percent in the upper-range segment. The new E-Class station wagon has made an immediate impression on customers as well: Since its market launch in Western Europe in March, 24,000 vehicles have been ordered.

The S-Class sedan remains the undisputed Nr. 1 in the luxury segment, with a global market share of about 43 percent. In the first five months of 2003, the company delivered 29,700 of the sedans. The SL-Class boosted its sales totals through May by four percent to 14,200 sports cars. As a result, it also remained the global leader with a market share of about 63 percent.

In most of its key European markets, Mercedes-Benz resisted the general trend during the first five months of the year and improved on its market shares. Sales records were set in three European countries: the UK (36,900 passenger cars, up eight percent), Italy (37,900 passenger cars, up three percent) and Spain (13,300 passenger cars, up four percent). In Germany, demand remained weak throughout the economy. From January through May, Mercedes-Benz sold 145,200 vehicles there, about six percent fewer than in the same period of 2002.

In Asia, sales of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars rose about 20 percent to 36,900 vehicles through May. In Japan, the biggest single market, Mercedes-Benz increased sales by 11 percent to 15,900 vehicles. In the United States, deliveries through May rose six percent to 19,200 vehicles. Total deliveries in the first five months of the year rose by a good two percent to a record level of 88,700 passenger cars.

(June 05, 2003)