The Volkswagen Group sales increased by 0.6 percent in the first four months of the year selling 3.36 million vehicles worldwide from January to April 2016. At 853,300 units, sales in April matched the prior-year level.

“The start to the second quarter highlights the mixed developments on regional markets. While we recorded a marked increase in Europe and North America, the South American market declined. Deliveries in Russia rose for the first time in months. Nevertheless, the situation on the Russian market remains tense and we are still proceeding with caution,” commented Fred Kappler, head of Group Sales at Volkswagen AG.

The Group brands sold 374,500 new vehicles in Europe in April, an increase of 3.8 percent compared with the previous year. Western Europe saw solid development in April with sales running at 317,300 units (+2.9 percent), of which 121,900 new vehicles (+3.8 percent) were sold in the home market of Germany. April also saw strong growth (+9.3 percent) in Central and Eastern Europe. Despite an increase of 0.4 percent in Russia in April, the Group’s year-to-date (YTD) sales in the market decreased by 12.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the company sold 82,300 vehicles in the North American market in April, an increase of 4.9 percent compared with the previous year. While there was a strong growth dynamic in Mexico, the decline on the US market continued (-3.6 percent). The situation on the overall passenger car market in South America remains tense as the Group sales decreased by 25.4 percent in January to April period. Sales in April went down 18.2 percent to 38,900 vehicles, of which 24,300 were sold in Brazil.

On the other hand, there has been solid growth in the Asia-Pacific region since the beginning of the year with sales rising 3.1 percent compared with the previous year to 1,366,800 units.

In China, 1,250,800 vehicles were sold during the same period, representing 4.8 percent growth. Despite intense competition in China, 295,300 vehicles (+0.1 percent) were sold in April.

Also read: Volkswagen Group posts flat sales in March and Q1-2016