Volvo Cars reports a slight increase in sales due to market uncertainty

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Volvo Cars sales rose 1% year-on-year to 62,458 cars in September, the Swedish automaker said on Wednesday, amid a volatile and uncertain market.

Volvo Cars, majority owned by China’s Geely Holding, said in a statement that overall sales in Europe, Volvo Cars’ biggest market, rose 23%, while sales in the United States and China rose 22%. or 16% decreased. , respectively.

“The overall market picture remains volatile and uncertain, but we are encouraged by the solid performance in Europe, particularly for our electric vehicle portfolio,” deputy CEO and chief commercial officer Björn Annwall said in the statement.

Sales of fully electric and plug-in hybrid models rose 43% and accounted for 48% of all cars sold in September, while the share of fully electric cars alone accounted for around a quarter of cars sold during the month.

The company’s shares fell 2.4% by 0731 GMT, underperforming the benchmark Stockholm stock exchange index, which rose 0.2%.

The company last month abandoned its goal of offering only electric vehicles by 2030 and cut its margin and sales ambitions, citing the impact of tariffs and a decline in demand for electric vehicles.

(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen, Editing by Terje Solsvik)