General Motors (GM) sold 1,070,508 vehicles in Europe in the first half of 2006, a slight increase of 2,058 vehicles over the same period last year (1,068,449 vehicles).  GM’s share of the growing European market was again 9.4 percent, consistent with 2005’s full-year share.  In June 2006, GM Europe sold 195,268 vehicles (2005: 205,834 vehicles), achieving a market share of 9.6 percent in a declining European market. In Russia, GM sold 52,699 vehicles in the first half of the year, increasing its sales by 17,016 vehicles or 48 percent year-on-year to outstrip one of the world’s fastest growing markets (up 20 percent).  

“It is very encouraging to see the growing success of Saab and Chevrolet sales around Europe. Setting new volume and market share records for both brands in the first half of this year was a real bonus. Chevrolet, one of the top three global automotive brands, is now making its mark in Europe and I expect to see this continue.  For Opel and Vauxhall, GM''s biggest volume brands in Europe, our financial turnaround is built on being increasingly selective about which sales we pursue and driving higher per unit revenues.  We are pleased with how this plan is playing out,” said Jonathan Browning, GM Europe Vice President, Sales, Marketing and Aftersales.

Cadillac, Corvette and Hummer perform well

General Motors’ luxury brands, Cadillac, Corvette and HUMMER, performed well in their respective niche markets in the first half of the year.  Corvette sold 733 cars in the first six months and Cadillac’s European sales grew by 30 percent, from 1,301 to 1,690 vehicles at the end of June.  HUMMER sales of the H2 and H3 increased to 801 vehicles, from 223 vehicles in 2005.

Saab achieves record sales levels in Europe

Saab''s global sales set a new record for the first half of the year, with 70,846 cars sold, up 11 percent from the previous year.  The largest growth was in Europe where 50,695 cars found new customers, an increase of 9,924 cars or 24.3 percent vs. 2005.  The U.S. remained the number one market globally for Saab, at 17,274 cars. The U.K. was number two, with 14,873 units sold, and Sweden closed the month and the year to date as Saab’s third biggest market, with 13,382 registrations and a market share of 8 percent.  The Saab 9-5 BioPower was again the number one ''green vehicle'' in the Swedish market.  Outstanding growth in the first half of 2006, compared to the year-earlier period, was achieved in a number of markets across Europe: Denmark (+ 43 percent), Sweden (+ 54 percent) and Finland (+ 43 percent), the Netherlands (+ 55 percent) and Switzerland (+ 44 percent). In June, Saab sold 9,875 cars in Europe, up 1,895 cars or 23.7 percent from June 2005.

Opel/Vauxhall growing in Northern Europe, Benelux, Central and Eastern Europe

GM’s biggest volume brands in Europe, Opel and Vauxhall, achieved total sales of 855,857 vehicles in the first half of the year, compared with 880,805 a year earlier, for a share of 7.5 percent.  The biggest sales gains were realized in the Nordic and Benelux regions (+ 5,900 vehicles), in Ireland (+ 2,100 vehicles) as well as in Central and Eastern Europe (+ 6,900 vehicles).  The growing reputation of the Opel brand led to market share gains in the following markets: the Netherlands (from 8.8 to 9.8 percent), Denmark (from 4.4 to 5.5 percent), Ukraine (from 1.3 to 2.3 percent) and Poland (from 8.4 to 9.4 percent).  Zafira and Meriva in the first half of 2006 lead the monocab segment in Europe, with Zafira sales (127,000 units) recording a 27 percent sales increase (+ 34,000 units) compared to the first six months of 2005. With the recent introduction of the Astra TwinTop and the up-coming launches of the new Corsa and the new Antara SUV, Opel’s product offensive continues. A record sales volume was achieved for Opel/Vauxhall commercial vehicles, selling 98,000, an increase of 2,600 vehicles or 3 percent.  Vivaro alone reached record sales of 37,000, an increase of 4,000 vehicles.

Vauxhall''s strategy of pursuing the more profitable retail market in the U.K. continued to be a success, with the brand taking an impressive 8.8 percent share of sales to private buyers compared to 7.9 percent in the same period last year.  Total market share is also continuing to show positive trends, with a total of 13.2 percent for the year so far, compared to 12.7 percent for the same period in 2005.  The success was pushed by a strong performance of Zafira and Meriva, both of which led their segments.  Vectra also had a very strong month, especially in the retail sector where it outsold it''s closest rival by almost two-to-one.

Chevrolet shows strong growth in Southern and Eastern Europe

Chevrolet continued its strong growth across Europe in the first half of the year, with record sales of 160,732* vehicles, an 11.2 percent increase over the same period a year earlier (144,517 vehicles).  After 1.33 percent half-way through 2005, Chevrolet’s record share of the total European market has now reached 1.42 percent.  At the same time, Chevrolet Europe opened its 2000th sales outlet.  Russia again performed very well, with sales of 44,760 cars and a market share of 4.9 percent in the first six months of the year.  Strong growth was recorded in Italy, where sales were up 23.3 percent, to 20,487 units in the first half of 2006. Chevrolet Spain increased sales by 10.6 percent, to 15,028 vehicles.  Chevrolet also achieved outstanding market shares in Greece (2.2 percent), Spain (1.5 percent) and South East Europe (2.5 percent). With the launch of Epica and the diesel-powered compact Captiva SUV, Chevrolet aims to continue its growth offensive in Europe. Chevrolet sold 29,438 vehicles in June 2006, and reached a market share of 1.4 percent.