Weak demand continues to depress Mercedes-Benz sales figures. Stuttgart’s electric cars in particular are selling significantly less.
Mercedes-Benz also sold fewer vehicles in the third quarter of the year than in the same period last year. From July to September, 594,600 cars and vans were sold. That is around three percent less than in the third quarter of 2023, the automaker said. The Stuttgart-based company has sold a total of 1.76 million vehicles so far this year – five percent less than in the same period last year.
Mercedes had to accept a significant decline in vans: with just over 91,000 vehicles, the decline was 13 percent. With 503,600 vehicles sold, the passenger car division recorded a decline of one percent compared to the third quarter of 2023. In the top product segment – which includes the S-Class, among others – the numbers reportedly fell by 12 percent.
The group had recently viewed the second half of the year with more confidence – partly because of the introduction of new models. Compared to the previous quarter, car sales increased slightly, due, among other things, to better product availability. However, weaker demand – especially in Asia – prevailed. In the important car market China, sales fell by 13 percent. With 170,700 vehicles, Mercedes still sold more than a third of its cars there.
E-car sales collapse by almost a third
Mercedes also recorded a decline in fully electric cars. Sales in this area fell by 31 percent to 42,500 units. In the third quarter, around one in twelve cars sold was purely electric. At the beginning of the year, almost every tenth car sold was a fully electric drive.
The company said the market environment for electric vehicles remains subdued in key markets. Sales of plug-in hybrids rose by ten percent worldwide in the third quarter – mainly driven by the US market.
Source: Stern
