BERLIN, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Volkswagen brand delivered 562,200 vehicles worldwide in October, a "strong increase" of 8.8 percent compared with the same month last year, the German car manufacturer said on Wednesday.
"The very strong performance by the Volkswagen brand in October is a great success given the current challenging macroeconomic environment," commented Juergen Stackmann, Volkswagen Management Board member responsible for sales.
In Germany alone, the Volkswagen brand handed over 51,800 vehicles to customers in October, an increase of 40 percent compared to last year, the company said.
According to Volkswagen (VW), the core brand of Germany's largest carmaker Volkswagen Group, 150,500 vehicles were delivered to customers in Europe, corresponding to a further "strong rise" of 23.4 percent.
The increase was "in part due to a basic effect from the weaker performance" across Europe in October last year as a result of the introduction of the new Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP) for the determination of exhaust emissions, stressed Stackmann.
According to the company, Volkswagen was "significantly better prepared" for the second stage of WLTP this year and increased its market share by growing "more strongly than the overall European market."
In China, the brand's largest single market, Volkswagen reported 294,700 delivered units, a 7.5 percent growth year-on-year, the company said.
The share of SUVs of all vehicles delivered in China exceeded 30 percent for the first time.
During the first ten months of the year, the Volkswagen brand delivered a total of 5.08 million vehicles worldwide, a slight 1.2 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. Enditem
