NEWS

Beijing, January 9, 2024: Volkswagen Group China proved the strength of its portfolio in 2023 amid a demanding market environment. With a clear focus on a sustainable and profitable business model, Volkswagen Group brands delivered 3.236 million vehicles to customers from January to December in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, a 1.6 percent increase compared to 2022. The Audi brand recorded a strong year, delivering 729,000 vehicles to customers in China. This marks an increase of 13.5 percent compared to the previous year, well above the average growth of the premium market in China. Volkswagen Brand and its Jetta sub-brand handed a total of 2,398,600 vehicles (+ 0.1 percent) to customers during 2023. The Volkswagen Group also clearly strengthened its position in the BEV segment. Fully electric car deliveries increased by 23.2 percent to 191,800 units in 2023.

Volkswagen’s ID.3 and ID.4, as well the Audi e-tron models, contributed to this success and the VW brand was among the top five electric vehicle brands in the market in the fourth quarter. With over 75,700 units handed over to customers in 2023, the ID.3 is not only one of the best-selling electric models, it also led the compact hatchback-segment ranking. Meanwhile, the ID.4 ranks among the top five in its compact SUV segment, with over 61,700 deliveries. In their first full year of sales, Audi’s e-tron models achieved 31,025 deliveries to customers.

Ralf Brandstätter, Member of the Board of Volkswagen AG for China, said: “With our ‘in China for China’ strategy, we are tailoring our portfolio to the needs of Chinese customers. The success of this strong roadmap is reflected in our robust position despite a challenging market. While the situation will remain demanding over the next two years, we are further developing our technological capabilities and setting up our business for the future.”

He added: “It is not all about market share. Profitability continues to be our top priority. In recent months, Volkswagen has identified and implemented cost optimisations for its fully electric vehicles in China, to strengthen the competitiveness of our products. We will not push ahead to grow at any cost in this highly competitive environment. We are focusing on investments for the next leap in innovation instead.”

Zhang Lan, Vice President of Group Sales of Volkswagen Group China, said: “In a highly competitive market environment, we have achieved a promising result in terms of deliveries. The fourth quarter was very strong in particular, with an upswing of 72.3 percent of the BEV delivery. This demonstrates the strength of our product range. In order to maintain our momentum despite tough competition over the next few years, we must continue tapping new market segments quickly, aligning our portfolio with new market trends effectively, while working on our cost structures. That’s our recipe for future success.”

ICE market forms a strong basis for Volkswagen Group's sustainable business development in China

A foundation for Volkswagen Group’s overall market strength in China lies in its wide range of vehicles in the internal combustion engine (ICE) market. The Group was able to expand its market share from 19 to 20 percent in 2023, with around 3 million ICE vehicles delivered to customers (+0.8 % compared to 2022). With economies of scale and a good cost position, profitability in this market generates the funds that can be invested into the Group’s wider transformation as part of the ‘in China, for China’ strategy.

In the coming years, the Group will continue to strengthen its ICE product base with new models, while all major products will get a high-end update. The ICE fleet is also undergoing a gradual process of hybridisation, which will allow expansion into the market segments of electrified cars (NEVs).

With its ‘in China for China’ strategy, Volkswagen Group is further accelerating its e-offensive

As early as this year, Volkswagen Group China will launch further models as part of its ‘in China, for China’ strategy and open up new market segments. The ID.7 is VW brand’s first car in the midsize segment, while the first Volkswagen car produced by the VW Anhui joint venture will complement VW brand’s BEV portfolio. And in 2026, the two new Volkswagen models jointly developed with XPENG will broaden the product offer of the VW brand.

From 2026 onwards, the new local e-platform developed by Volkswagen China Technology Company (VCTC) will form the basis for additional e-models of the VW brand in the entry level segment (A Main).

The Audi FAW NEV Company production site in Changchun will begin production of all-electric vehicles based on the Premium Platform Electric at the end of 2024, starting with the Q6L e-tron.