Mercedes-Benz Q3 car sales fall 8% as China demand weakness persists, EV sales rise 52%

(Reuters) – German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz said on Wednesday sales ​in its core car business ‌continued to fall in the third quarter, declining 8% year-on-year ​due to challenging market ​conditions in China.

  • Car deliveries fell ⁠to 407,200 units in ​the July-September period, the company ​said in a statement.
  • In China, the drop was 31% to 86,800 ​units, compared with the ​same period last year.
  • Quarterly sales in Top-End ‌segment ⁠dropped 21% to 53,900 units, affected by the weaker market environment in China ​and ongoing ​model ⁠changeovers.
  • However, car sales rose by 6% in ​the U.S. and 5% ​in ⁠Europe.
  • Group sales of battery-electric vehicles, which include cars and ⁠vans, ​rose by 52% ​to 78,100 units.

Reporting by Rachel More and ​Amir Orusov Editing by Linda Pasquini