Bentley sales jump 30% as US leads the way
THE US has retaken top spot as Bentley’s biggest sales territory, the luxury car maker said as it reported a 32% increase in first half sales.
The Crewe-based manufacturer said sales in the six months to June 30 had increased in every region and it had delivered 3,929 cars to customers in the period.
In the US deliveries surged by 25.7% to 1,140. China, which took top spot in the first quarter of this year, continued to be a strong territory with growth of 55.7% (1,059 cars delivered).
The Mulsanne model sold strongly in both markets and saw an overall increase of 30%. Thenew Continental GT underscored its popularity with customers around the world. Deliveries of the premium coupé, which is now available with both W12 and V8 engines, increased by 48.5%.
Despite the ongoing troubles in the euro zone Bentley’s European sales were up 22.9% with 607 deliveries to customers. In its domestic market, sales growth was a more modest 4.5% as cars were 557 delivered.
The Middle East (up 47.9%) and Asia Pacific (also saw string growth), while sales in Japan rocketed 114.3% after falling away last year after the devastating eathquake there last year.
Chief executiveWolfgang Duerheimer, said: “Our half year results show strong growth for Bentley in every single global region. The competition between the Americas and China continues and we are watching closely to see who will emerge as the largest region in 2012.
“Sales are being driven up by our flagship Mulsanne which is up 30% following strong interest in the US and China. We are also pleased to see the continued growth of the new Continental GT W12, our pinnacle performance coupé.
“I am very optimistic about the future for Bentley. We are gaining more momentum every month due to the strong performance of our global dealer network, the appeal of our existing model line to customers and the exciting future models like the Continental GT Speed we have in the pipeline.”
