If 2016 has consecrated Mercedes-Benz as the world's most commercially successful premium builder, beating its rivals BMW and Audi, 2017 promises to be even better. It's still early to declare victory, but 2017 is guaranteed to be the star brand's best year ever.
Last year, in 2016, the brand sold 2,083,888 cars. This year, by the end of November, Mercedes-Benz has already surpassed that value, having sold 2 095 810 units . In November alone, around 195 698 cars were delivered, an increase of 7.2% compared to the previous year. Year-to-date, the increase is even more significant, around 10.7% compared to 2016 — it should be noted that this is the 57th consecutive month of sales increase.
crunching the numbers
The rising global numbers are due to excellent regional and individual performances. In Europe, the star brand grew by 7.3% compared to 2016 — 879 878 units sold until the end of November 2017 — with sales records being registered in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland , Sweden, Poland, Austria and Portugal.In the Asia-Pacific region, growth is even more expressive, with the brand growing 20.6% — 802 565 units sold —, with the Chinese market rising by around 27.3%, totaling more than half. million units sold by the end of November 2017.
In the NAFTA region (US, Canada and Mexico), growth is almost neutral, only 0.5%, as a result of the drop in sales in the US (-2%). Despite significant increases in Canada (+12.7%) and Mexico (+25.3%), they can do little when the US absorbed 302 043 units of the 359 953 sold in the region until November this year.
The increase in sales also enabled Mercedes-Benz to be the best-selling premium brand in Portugal, Germany, France, Italy, Austria, Taiwan, USA, Canada and Mexico.
Featured models
The E-Class, with the current generation entering its second year of commercialization, was one of the ones that most contributed to the excellent results of the brand, presenting this year a growth of 46% compared to the same period in 2016 — highlighting the version long available in China.
The S-Class, recently updated and introduced in China and the US last September, grows at a rate of 18.5% over the previous year. And in a world unable to resist the appeal of SUVs, Mercedes-Benz models also demonstrate a remarkable commercial performance, registering a 19.8% increase in sales compared to last year.
The figures presented also include those of Smart, which contributed, until the end of November, with 123 130 units globally.