Groupe Renault sales fall 34.9% in first half of 2020
Renault Zoe
Pandemic hits demand for French firm's cars, but rising sales for Zoe EV provide encouragement
Groupe Renault’s global sales fell by 34.9% year-on-year in the first half of 2020 due to the pandemic, but the firm believes that it's well-placed to stage a strong recovery in the next six months.
The French firm, whose brands include Renault, Alpine, Dacia and Lada, sold 1,256,658 units between January and June.
That included 623,854 vehicles in Europe, a year-on-year decline of 48.1%. The group also suffered sharp falls in sales in China (-20.8%), Brazil (-39.0%) and India (-49.4%), with various lockdown measures hitting sales in each region.
There were some brighter signs for Renault, however, with sales rising in June as dealerships in Europe reopened. The firm also achieved record sales of the Zoe electric supermini, with the 37,540 sold in Europe representing a rise of nearly 50%.
Denis le Vote, Groupe Renault's sales boss, said: “The world has gone through an unprecedented crisis with a major impact on our business. As soon as the recovery began, our plants and sales network quickly mobilised to meet our customers' needs, with demand sustained in June by government aid measures in Europe.”
In a release, Groupe Renault said it's on track to achieve its Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) targets for 2020, helped by the sales success of the Zoe and the launch of hybrid or plug-in hybrid versions of the Clio, Captur and Mégane estate.
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