BERLIN: German carmaker Volkswagen has said sales of its flagship brand fell 4.8% last year as the company struggled to contain the fallout from the emissions scandal. VW sold 295,300 fewer cars in 2015 despite the emissions scandal not being revealed until September, meaning that further impact could be felt well in to 2016.
These global figures are at odds with the brand’s UK performance. Earlier this week, The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said that VW sales in the UK rose 4.2% to 223,784 vehicles.
However, the SMMT data also highlighted a 0.4% dip in December which suggests that the full impact has not yet been fell felt. The brand had experienced a 20% decrease in registrations in November.
There were mixed results for other brands owned by the Volkswagen group last month, with Seat down by 46.4% but Audi up by 14.1% and Skoda by 4.2%. Volkswagen’s share price closed marginally higher in Frankfurt today, but has fallen 37% in the last 12 months.
