Mercedes and BMW: sales fall in the third quarter

Two suppliers of expensive cars headquartered in Germany are having to cope with falling sales figures. 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. This is around three percent less than in the third quarter of 2023, the car manufacturer announced. The decline at BMW was even more pronounced. Sales fell by 13 percent to 540,882 cars in the three months to the end of September. The reason for this was a slump in sales in China and problems with brakes.

In total, Mercedes-Benz has sold 1.76 million vehicles so far this year, five percent fewer than in the same period last year. Mercedes suffered a greater decline in vans: With just over 91,000 vehicles sold, the drop amounted to 13 percent. With 503,600 vehicles sold, the Passenger Cars segment recorded a decline of one percent compared to the third quarter of 2023. In the top product segment, which includes the S-Class and EQS, figures fell by 12 percent, according to the figures.

The Group had recently looked to the second half of the year with more confidence, partly due to the launch of new models. Compared to the previous quarter, passenger car sales rose slightly, partly due to better product availability. However, weaker demand, particularly in Asia, outweighed this. In China, sales fell by 13 percent. However, with 170,700 vehicles, Mercedes still sold more than a third of its cars there.

Mercedes: e-car sales collapse

Mercedes also recorded a decline in sales of fully electric cars. At 42,500 units, sales in this segment fell by 31 percent. This means that around one in twelve cars sold in the third quarter had a battery-electric drive. At the beginning of the year, almost every tenth car sold was an electric vehicle. The market environment for electric vehicles remains subdued in key markets, according to the company. Sales of plug-in hybrids rose by ten percent worldwide in the third quarter, mainly driven by the US market.

BMW sells more e-cars

At BMW, sales figures fell in all regions. However, with a decline of almost 30 percent to 147,691 cars, the drop in China was particularly significant. BMW had already reported on the problems with brakes from supplier Continental and the weak business in China at the beginning of September and therefore cut its forecast. In contrast, BMW made progress in the sale of e-cars. Sales of cars with battery-electric drive systems rose by ten percent to 103,440 across the Group in the third quarter.

(mfz)