BERLIN (Reuters) – German carmaker Volkswagen said on Tuesday that sales of its core brand dropped by 15% to 5.3 million vehicles in 2020 as the outbreak of coronavirus and lockdowns imposed to restrict infections hit car dealerships around the world.
Volkswagen said it had seen sales recovering in December compared to previous months, rising by 19.5% in western Europe and 14.7% in North America. It added that demand for its electric models jumped by 158% on the year, to 212,000 vehicles.
“We are well on the way to achieving our goal of becoming the market leader in battery electric vehicles,” VW brand CEO Ralf Brandstaetter said in a statement.
For the year as a whole, Volkswagen brand sales fell by 23.4% in western Europe and by 17.1% in North America, while the smallest drop was in China, at 9.9%.
(Reporting by Riham Alkousaa; editing by Emma Thomasson)
