Audi records 11th straight year of increased sales

German prestige car maker Audi has reported strong fiscal 2004 results, with profits up and increased car sales year on year for the 11th consecutive year, supported by buoyant growth in emerging markets and the UK.

Revenue generated by the Audi Group was up by 4.7% in 2004 to E24.5 billion. Profit after tax improved by 7.4% to a record level of E871 million. We were able to reap the first benefits of our successful process and cost optimization measures, stressed Rupert Stadler, board member for finance. Audi sold 1.2% more cars in 2004 than 2003, which equates to a new sales record for the eleventh year in succession. The German auto company sold 779,441 vehicles worldwide, while best-ever figures were recorded in 21 of the 50 largest sales markets. The top growth regions include Eastern Europe (up 19.3%), Africa (up 17.2%) and the Middle East sales region (up 58.5%). Meanwhile, Audi continues to sell most of its cars in western Europe, which includes its home market. The prestige car manufacturer boosted sales in western Europe by 2.1% to 559,428 cars in 2004. In Germany, due to weak domestic demand Audi sold a total of 235,092 cars (down 1.1%). However, one of the individual markets with the highest growth rate was Great Britain, where Audi sales have more than doubled in just seven years. This market expanded by 11.1% to 77,882 units in 2004 alone. There was disappointment in the US where sales were down by 9.8% with sales of 77,917 cars; however the US remains the biggest export market. China set a new sales record of 64,018 units (up 0.8%), while Japan increased its total by 4.7% to 13,751 cars. Audi held its ground on the global automotive market and continued the success story of previous years. This year we will be looking to build on this and significantly increase sales, said Professor Martin Winterkorn, chairman of the board of management of Audi AG. We have made a dynamic start to the year 2005 and the level of orders received is well above our expectations.. Audi is hoping for even stronger sales in 2005 off the back of its remodeled new car lineup, which includes for the first time in 2005 the Audi A4 saloon and Avant, the A6, the A3 Sportback and the 12-cylinder A8. For the longer term, Audi chairman Winterkorn commented that the company wanted to reach one million annual sales by 2008.