Volvo Cars reports 29.1 per cent sales growth in the first two months of 2021

Volvo Cars' global sales performance remained strong in February after the company posted a 29.1 per cent growth for the first two months of the year, compared with the same period last year.

Total sales during the period amounted to 110,383 cars as US, Europe and China reported a growth in volumes. The sales increase was driven by an ongoing recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic in China compared to last year, a solid performance on the US market and increased sales in Sweden.

For the month of February, Volvo Cars sold a total of 50,795 cars, up 27.8 per cent compared to the same month last year and the company's best February sales performance ever.

Its Recharge line-up of chargeable models, with a fully electric or plug-in hybrid powertrain, continued to grow in popularity among customers and accounted for 26.6 per cent of all Volvo cars sold globally in February. In Europe, Recharge cars represented 44 per cent of the overall sales volume.

In China, Volvo Cars sold 29,243 cars in the first two months, up 160.6 per cent year-on-year, as the company managed to more than recover lost sales due to Covid-19 shutdowns last year.

US sales continued to grow year-on-year and reached 17,315 cars in January and February, up 23.7 per cent compared with the same period last year. The strong increase was led by the brand's premium SUVs which accounted for 80 per cent of total sales.

The company's European sales grew 5.5 per cent in the first two months of 2021 to 48,784 cars, compared to the same period last year, driven mainly by increased sales in Sweden.

A detailed break-up of regional sales is given below:

February

January-February

2020

2021

Change

2020

2021

Change

Europe

23,442

23,927

2.1%

46,252

48,784

5.5%

China

1,205

10,083

736.8.%

11,220

29,243

160.6%

7,841

9,164

16.9%

13,998

17,315

23.7%

Other

7,254

7,621

5.1%

14,024

15,041

7.3%

Total

39,742

50,795

27.8%

85,494

110,383

29.1%

In February, the XC40 was the top selling model with sales of 15,818 cars (2020: 10,266), followed by the XC60 with total sales of 14,463 cars (9,774 units) and the Volvo XC90 with 6,808 cars (4,852 units).

Volvo Car Group in 2020
For the 2020 financial year, Volvo Car Group recorded an operating profit of 8.5 BSEK (14.3 BSEK in 2019). Revenue over the period amounted to 262.8 BSEK (274.1 BSEK). For the full year of 2020, global sales reached 661,713 cars (705,452), a decline of 6.2 per cent compared to 2019.

About Volvo Car Group
Volvo Cars was founded in 1927. Today, it is one of the most well-known and respected car brands in the world with sales of 661,713 cars in 2020 in about 100 countries. Volvo Cars has been under the ownership of the Zhejiang Geely Holding since 2010.

As of December 2020, Volvo Cars employed approximately 40,000 (41,500) full-time employees. Volvo Cars head office, product development, marketing and administration functions are mainly located in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo Cars head office for APAC is located in Shanghai. The company's main car production plants are located in Gothenburg (Sweden), Ghent (Belgium), South Carolina (US), Chengdu and Daqing (China), while engines are manufactured in Skövde (Sweden) and Zhangjiakou (China) and body components in Olofström (Sweden).

Under its new company purpose, Volvo Cars aims to provide customers with the Freedom to Move in a personal, sustainable and safe way. This purpose is reflected in a number of business ambitions: for example, by the middle of this decade it aims for half of its global sales to be fully electric cars, to sell half of its global volume online and to establish five million direct consumer relationships. Volvo Cars is also committed to an ongoing reduction of its carbon footprint, with the ambition to be a climate-neutral company by 2040.

Photo credit: Volvo
posted on conceptcarz.com