General Motors Post Record Breaking First Quarter Global Sales

General Motors, the world’s largest car manufacturer, recently announced that they have increased their first quarter sales this year compared to 2006. The announcement came after dipping sales figures in the United States. The Michigan-based car manufacturer reported that they have sold 2.26 million vehicles all over the world for the first three months of this year.

The said figure shows that the biggest first quarter sales recorded in the lengthy history of the auto manufacturer. The figure also shows that GM sold 67,000 more vehicles through the first three months of this year compared to 2006 and that is a 3 percent sale improvement.

John Middlebrook, the Vice President for Global Sales, Service and Marketing Operations for General Motors, has this to say about the record global sales: “GM posted record sales in the first quarter driven by exceptionally strong demand in emerging markets.” He also pointed out the increased sale in different regions all over the world. “We saw more than 20 percent growth in the Asia/Pacific region and had 17 percent growth in the Latin America, Africa and Middle East region. We're also very pleased to see 6 percent growth in Europe where we sold more than a half-million vehicles and established a new sales record,” Middlebrook said.

Among the brands under General Motors which showed increased sales are Chevrolet, Hummer, and Cadillac. Of the three brands, Chevrolet is General Motor’s best selling brand and it has shown that it is not only popular in the United States but also in different countries all over the world. Chevy brand global sales reached 1.04 million for the first quarter. That shows a four percent improvement over the sales for the first quarter of 2006. The brand’s popularity is soaring in the European market where sales increase by 33 percent.

In the Asia-Pacific region, Chevy is also widely supported by car buyers evident on the 12 percent sales increase in the region. In Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East combined, Chevy sales for the first quarter increased by 19 percent.

Hummer, the luxury truck brand under General Motors, also showed strong global sales for the first quarter. In the Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East regions combined, the sales of the brand increased by 37 percent. For the first quarter of the year, the Hummer brand posted sales figure of 15,000 units all over the world. Strong sales can be expected from the brand as General Motors focused on the improvement of H2s and H3s. In North America, General Motors will offer a V8 powered H3 while in South Africa right-hand drive Hummer H3s will begin production soon.

Cadillac, the General Motors’ luxury vehicle brand, also showed increased sales globally for the first quarter of 2007. In Europe, sales increased by 89 percent. In the Latin America, Africa, and Middle East auto markets, Cadillac increased sales by 55 percent. In the Asia-Pacific region, sales for Cadillac increased by 47 percent.

The strong sales of these three brands propelled General Motors to a sales record breaking first quarter. Other brands under General Motors aside from the three are Buick, Daewoo, GMC, Holden, Opel, Pontiac, Saturn, Saab Automobile, and Vauxhall. Past brands for GM includes the Oldsmobile and the defunct Geo brand known for fuel efficient vehicles which can be further enhanced by the Geo cold air intake system.