VW surpasses Toyota as world's largest automaker in first half of 2015
Source: USA Today
Volkswagen surpassed Toyota as the world's largest automaker in the first half of 2015, fulfilling a long-held goal, despite a sales slump in the U.S.
Volkswagen sold 5.04 million vehicles in the first six months of the year, edging Toyota's 5.02 million. General Motors, once the world's biggest automaker by a long shot, is now firmly entrenched in the No. 3 slot. It has not yet released its official first-half stats.
Sales in the U.S. have been sluggish, as well. U.S. sales of the Volkswagen brand fell 10% in 2014, despite a 5.9% gain in overall industry sales. For the first six months of 2015, Volkswagen brand sales fell 2.6%, compared to a 4.4% increase for the overall industry. By contrast, U.S. sales for the Toyota brand rose 5.8% in 2014 and 5.2% for the first half of 2015.
To be sure, though, the U.S. market has reflected one of Volkswagen's only significant slip-ups. The company has claimed the top spot in China, the world's largest vehicle market, and remains dominant in Europe.
Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2015/07/28/volkswagen-surpasses-toyota-worlds-largest-automaker-first-half-2015/30772509/
Interesting that VW is the top selling car in China, the largest car-buying country in the world, rather than Toyota.
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The Volkswagen ("The Peoples' Car"
was commissioned by Hitler to Ferdinand Porsche, who proceeded to produce the Beetle for his psychopathic but powerful client. Instead of the operation being dismantled by the Allies as a punishment to the Nazis, it was allowed to survive and flourish.
