This Just In: Mercedes Car Group's Worldwide Sales Drop 3.5% In October

Posted by www.eMercedesBenz.com on November 7th, 2006 At 7:50 AM CST

This month's second round of financials have come rolling in, and  
unfortunately, worldwide sales of the Mercedes Car Group have  
declined for the second straight month.  In total, global sales of  
the Mercedes-Benz, Maybach and smart brands amounted to 102,500 new  
units for October, a decrease of 3.5 percent.

But despite the decline, sales of the Mercedes-Benz brand have  
remained strong, with the luxury division noting sales of 94,200  
passenger cars in October - matching the high levels achieved in  
October 2005. The most significant factor helping sales was strong  
market performance across the globe, including a 13% increase in  
October sales here in the U.S. and a 17% ytd increase in the Asia/ 
Pacific region.

As for individual model statistics, sales of the S-Class have  
remained incredibly strong, with sales of the luxury sedan totaling  
76,300 units since the beginning of the year.  The new E-Class has  
also noted tremendous success, with the recently-updated model  
achieving October sales figures of 18,900 units - an increase of 10%  
compared to October of 2005.

Unfortunately, despite sales at Mercedes, the smart brand continued  
its downward spiral in October, with the mini-car division noting a  
31.3% decrease in sales.  This brings the smart brand's ytd total to  
96,200 new units - a decline of 20.6%.

To learn more about worldwide October sales at the Mercedes Car  
Group, visit www.eMercedesBenz.com for the official press release,  
which includes individual region sales figures and a current year-to- 
date sales summary.