Mercedes-Benz wins the sales race against BMW and Audi during the pandemics

Mercedes-Benz wins the sales race against BMW and Audi during the coronavirus pandemics. All three grand brands have marked major decreases during the crisis though.

Mercedes-Benz keeps its leadership in the sales race for the first three months of 2020. The star-logo company has sold more than 477,000 units from January to March, while 555,300 customers chose a car with the star in the same period last year. BMW follows suit in the rival’s footsteps, with almost 412,000 cars sold worldwide, while Audi had to settle for almost 353,000 units.

Mercedes-Benz Q1 2020 sales: 14.9% drop due to coronavirus epidemic

The figures were seriously affected by the coronavirus pandemics. For the first three months of the year, Mercedes sold almost 15% less cars than in the same period of time last year. BMW failed by approximately 20% to reach the figures of 2019, while Audi was left with minus 18% cars sold.

All of the three marked major losses in China and the United States, their most important markets. Mercedes sold -21% less vehicles there from January to March compared to the same period of 2019. The German car maker also lost 7% of the American market compared to last year.

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The decrease was also the trend for the Daimler Trucks & Buses division. 97,600 vehicles were sold in the first quarter, compared to the 2019’s 121,400.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has substantial effects on the global economy – and our company. We took the proactive decision to stop production in March, and moved very quickly into cash preservation and cost management mode. As a consequence, Daimler ended the first quarter with a positive result and a robust liquidity”, says Ola Kallenius, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG

Also due to the slow sales during the global spread of the corona virus, in the first quarter of 2020, net profit was €168 million (Q1 2019: €2,149 million).