Audi Celebrates Successes in China

“Audi’s business in China has reached new heights,” declared Erich Schmitt, Member of the Board of Management of AUDI AG and also responsible for AUDI’s activities in China. Schmitt explained: “Production is running at full capacity and our sales figures are increasing rapidly. In November we were able to practically double sales of our premium models to Chinese customers (up 95 percent compared with the same month last year) and, with 6,099 units sold, have set another new sales record.” Audi is expecting to achieve a sales volume of about 62,000 units by the end of the year (2002: 36,492), including about 52,000 A6 and 8,000 A4 models manufactured locally. This means that Audi has tripled its sales volume within just three years, declared the Audi Board Member.

From January to November, sales rose to more than 56,000 units, an increase of 69 percent compared with the same period last year. Audi cars are now sold by more than 85 exclusive dealerships in the major Chinese cities. More than 70 percent are bought by private customers.

As the leading manufacturer in the premium segment, Audi has been present in China since 1988. Alongside the A6, the Audi A4 has been produced at the Changchun plant since April 2003. The Audi A8, Audi A4 Cabriolet, allroad quattro and Audi TT are imported. The new Audi A8, including the long-wheelbase version, was introduced in October. China is now the third biggest market for the A8 after Germany and the USA. Around 1,000 A8 models will be sold there this year.