Media Middle East

New Vehicles Boost General Motors Sales in the Middle East by 11 Percent in October

2011-11-15

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DUBAI - General Motors’ dealers in the Middle East reported total sales of 11,545 vehicles in October 2011, an 11 percent increase versus a year ago.

The impressive sales figure was the result of continued robust sales throughout the region for the company’s line-up of passenger cars, crossovers, sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and pickups across the Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac brands.

Total sales of Chevrolet in October rose by 15 percent year-over-year, while Cadillac experienced a 10 percent increase. Sales of GMC remained flat during the month.

The biggest gain in sales was achieved by GM’s recently launched vehicles, which increased by 49 percent in October compared to the same month in 2010.

Strong sales of the Chevrolet Cruze, Malibu, Camaro, Traverse, Captiva and Sonic; the GMC Terrain; and the Cadillac SRX and CTS Coupe gave a significant boost to GM’s sales in the region during October.

“We are in the midst of a product renaissance with new world-class vehicles competing in just about every segment. The Chevrolet Sonic, which was only introduced to showrooms last month, exceeded our sales target during October,” said John Stadwick, President and Managing Director of GM Middle East Operations.

“I am confident that the new vehicles we revealed last week at the Dubai International Motor Show – the Chevrolet TrailBlazer, Malibu and Colorado – will be equally popular with customers here in the Middle East when they are introduced in showrooms next year.”

October represented GM Middle East’s thirteenth consecutive month of double-digit total sales growth and contributed to year-to-date total sales growth of 21 percent for the first 10 months of 2011 compared to the same period in 2010.

Retail sales, those to individual customers, rose 55 percent in October driven by high showroom traffic in the run up to Eid-al-Adha. Year-to-date retail sales increased by 50 percent for the first 10 months of 2011 compared to the same period in 2010.

Passenger Cars

Total sales of GM passenger cars grew by 4 percent during October, driven by strong sales of the Chevrolet Malibu (up 17 percent) and the Chevrolet Cruze (up 15 percent).

Sport Utility Vehicles

Across Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac, total sales of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) increased by 15 percent in October. The Cadillac Escalade (up 52 percent) and the Chevrolet Tahoe (up 43 percent) were the best performing SUV nameplates during the month.

Crossovers
Crossover sales across Chevrolet, GMC and Cadillac were up 78 percent in October led by strong sales of the Chevrolet Captiva (up 126 percent) and Chevrolet Traverse (up 105 percent).

Pickups

Total sales of GM pickups increased by 5 percent during October due to a strong performance by Silverado, which grew sales by 120 percent during the month.

About General Motors
General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM, TSX: GMM) and its partners produce vehicles in 30 countries, and the company has leadership positions in the world's largest and fastest-growing automotive markets.  GM’s brands include Chevrolet and Cadillac, as well as Baojun, Buick, GMC, Holden, Isuzu, Jiefang, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. More information on the company and its subsidiaries, including OnStar, a global leader in vehicle safety, security and information services, can be found at http://www.gm.com.

In the Middle East since the 1920s, General Motor’s vehicle brands sold in the region are Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC supported by a unique set of customer-focused services. GM parts and accessories are sold under the GM Parts and ACDelco brands. The regional office in Dubai covers the company’s operations in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, UAE and Yemen. For more media material about GM in the Middle East, please visit http://media.gmarabia.com.

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