PSA Peugeot Citroen reported on April 24 a 2.3% gain in first-quarter sales compared with the same period last year. Vehicle sales in the first quarter came to 809,700, while sales of parts rose 92.9% to 66,700 units, "linked almost exclusively to sales in Iran," Peugeot said.
Sales in the January-March period came to 15.212 billion euros (US$24 billion).
Peugeot foresees sales growth of 5% this year and is sticking to its forecast of a 3.5% operating margin. The manufacturer is counting on good results from the release of seven new models in the second quarter.
In Western Europe vehicle sales slipped 0.9% to 591,100 units. At the end of March Peugeot had a Western European market share of 14%, compared with 14.2% at the end of first quarter 2007.
First-quarter sales rose 5.4% in Eastern Europe, 29.6% in Russia, 36.4% in Latin America and 3.8% in China.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2008
