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Bentley leads convoy for mini-recovery in UK car production
The Guardian – The luxury carmaker Bentley has defied the economic gloom with a 37% surge in global sales, while European stock markets rallied after fresh data showed manufacturing is doing slightly better than expected.
Investors were heartened by figures showing global manufacturing activity had not collapsed, as some feared. In Britain, the sector contracted less in December than in recent months, according to the purchasing managers’ index (PMI), while a keenly watched survey in China showed an increase in manufacturing activity, sending share prices higher around the world.
But Bentley took analysts by surprise on Tuesday with a sparkling set of figures for 2011, powered by rising sales to China and the United States. It has forecast strong growth this year.
British-based car firms such as Bentley have provided glimmers of light for hard-pressed manufacturers. Toyota said in November that it planned to create 1,500 UK jobs as part of a £100m investment to build a new family car at its factory in Derbyshire. And Jaguar Landrover is planning to double the size of its Merseyside plant, adding more than 1,000 positions.
Bentley’s boss, Wolfgang Dürheimer, said his firm’s performance was down to the growing allure of its models, particularly the new Continental GT, priced from £136,000, which accounted for more than a third of sales. He acknowledged this year would be tough, but said he still expected sales growth to be in double figures.
The recent launch of Bentley’s new soft-top Continental GTC has been a big hit, and boosted December sales by 69% on the same month in 2010. The Bentley Mulsanne, described as the company’s “flagship” model, which costs nearly £226,000, is also selling well, said Dürheimer.
Bentley, owned by the German car group Volkswagen (VW), is based in Britain where it employs 4,000 people in Crewe and is viewed as one of the most successful Anglo-German business ventures.
One analyst said: “It’s a partnership and it works fantastically well – very different from the disastrous association between Rover and BMW.”
Dürheimer said: “The dramatic sales growth reflects the global strength of the brand, and a recognition of the quality, craftsmanship and engineering excellence of our cars.”
Bentley employs about 800 British engineers and has launched a campaign in British schools to attract more people to auto engineering at a time when there are international skills shortages.
Sales at the group bounced back to pre-recession levels during 2011, with strong growth in leading markets. The 37% global rise equates to more than 7,000 vehicle sales.
The US continues to be Bentley’s biggest market with 2,021 cars sold last year, an increase of 32%. China took second spot with sales doubling to 1,839 and surpassing the previous year’s record before the end of July.
“This achievement is even more remarkable considering Bentley has been present in China for less than ten years,” said Dürheimer.
One of the weakest spots for Bentley has been the UK, which was described as “extremely challenging” – but even here the company managed a 5% increase, selling 1,031 cars.
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Bentley leads convoy for mini-recovery in UK car production
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