Volvo Car Australia has achieved a strong start to 2021, with January sales almost doubling compared to 12 months ago.
National sales data released by VFACTs show Volvo sold 803 cars in January, a 45% increase compared to January 2020. It follows a solid December 2020 result when Volvo increased sales by 34% compared to 2019.
"It was very pleasing to have maintained momentum in January after what was a strong end to 2020," said Stephen Connor, who took over as new Managing Director on January 1 of this year.
"The overall Australian car market grew by 11%, whilst the luxury segment grew by 6.1% year-on-year. This is welcome news for premium manufacturers after a very challenging 2020 during which Covid19 impacted sales.
"It was also satisfying to note that Volvo's 45% increase in sales in January was the highest of any manufacturer in the premium car segment. Volvo continues to be one of the fastest growing luxury car brands in Australia.
"This is a very positive start to the year as we aim to crack the 10,000 sales targets in 2021 for the first time in our history in the Australian market.
"Volvo continues to punch above its weight in the luxury SUV segments. In January our Volvo XC40 achieved a top 2 position and 20.3% share in the compact SUV segment.
"Volvo XC60 achieved a top 3 position and a 13.4% share of the medium SUV segment. And in the large SUV segment Volvo XC90 also performed well in January, increasing year-on-year sales by 18%, and taking an 8% share."
Connor confirmed Volvo's MY22 model range due to launch in July 2021 will only be pure electric, mild hybrid or plug in hybrid as the company forge ahead with its electrification strategy.
In Q3 2021 Volvo will launch its first all-electric car, the XC40 Recharge Pure Electric, which will be the first of five all-electric models to be launched over the next five years.
"As I have previously stated, during 2021 all diesel models are being phased out as part of Volvo's electrification strategy. After our successful January result, I anticipate that our dealer network will achieve this by the end of March."
During 2021 Volvo will expand its retail footprint with the addition of three new Volvo Retail Experience dealerships in Queensland and Victoria, as well as a new training centre in Sydney.
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Volvo Car Group in 2020
For the 2020 financial year, Volvo Car Group recorded an operating profit of 8.5 BSEK (14.3 BSEK in 2019). Revenue over the period amounted to 262.8 BSEK (274.1 BSEK). For the full year of 2020, global sales reached 661,713 cars (705,452), a decline of 6.2 per cent compared to 2019.
About Volvo Car Group
Volvo Cars was founded in 1927. Today, it is one of the most well-known and respected car brands in the world with sales of 661,713 cars in 2020 in about 100 countries. Volvo Cars has been under the ownership of the Zhejiang Geely Holding since 2010.
As of December 2020, Volvo Cars employed approximately 40,000 (41,500) full-time employees. Volvo Cars head office, product development, marketing and administration functions are mainly located in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo Cars head office for APAC is located in Shanghai. The company's main car production plants are located in Gothenburg (Sweden), Ghent (Belgium), South Carolina (US), Chengdu and Daqing (China), while engines are manufactured in Skövde (Sweden) and Zhangjiakou (China) and body components in Olofström (Sweden).
Under its new company purpose, Volvo Cars aims to provide customers with the Freedom to Move in a personal, sustainable and safe way. This purpose is reflected into a number of business ambitions: for example, by the middle of this decade it aims for half of its global sales to be fully electric cars and to establish five million direct consumer relationships. Volvo Cars is also committed to an ongoing reduction of its carbon footprint, with the ambition to be a climate-neutral company by 2040.