The FINANCIAL -- AUDI AG sold approximately 893,600 cars worldwide between January and November, a rise of 7.3 percent on the prior-year period (2006: 833,021), company has reported.

In November itself, more than 75,600 cars were handed over to their new owners (up 0.5 percent; 2006: 75,258). Audi enjoyed further growth particularly in the intensively competitive European markets. Sales in European countries outside Germany in November rose to around 28,950 cars (up 3.5 percent; 2006: 27,972).

Audi achieved growth of 8.4 percent in these countries in the first eleven months of the year, with the total climbing to around 408,200 cars sold (2006: 376,607). The biggest individual market in the region was the UK, where sales increased by 31.4 percent to 6,981 units in November (2006: 5,311) and a total of 96,909 cars for the first eleven months of the year (up 17.4 percent; 2006: 82,555). In Spain, another strong market for the Ingolstadt-based brand, Audi improved its sales total by 9.0 percent to 4,383 cars in November (2006: 4,020) and by 5.3 percent to 54,018 for the first eleven months (2006: 51.297). In Germany, Audi sold 22,094 cars in November (down 7.9 percent; 2006: 23,978); over the first eleven months of the year, AUDI AG sold 232,277 vehicles in its home market, a slight drop of 1.6 percent (2006: 236,064) compared with the previous year. Market share in Germany rose from 7.6 percent to 7.9 percent over the first eleven month.

Audi achieved its steepest growth rates in Eastern Europe, where sales soared by 30.1 percent in November (around 2,400 cars; 2006: 1,849) and 34.1 percent over the first eleven months (around 34,100 cars; 2006: 25,403). In Russia alone, the brand enjoyed a rise in sales of 24.4 percent to 1,120 cars in November (2006: 900). Audi achieved growth of 51.6 percent there in the first eleven months of the year in recording a total of 13,986 units (2006: 9,227).

In China (including Hongkong), which is emerging as a second home market for the Ingolstadt-based company, the brand sold 8,685 cars in November (up 14.7 percent; 2006: 7.575). The figure for January to November was 92,548 cars, 24.7 percent more than in the previous year (2006: 74,209). In the USA, Audi handed 9,104 new cars over to customers (down 1.1 percent; 2006: 9,209); over the first eleven months, the total of 85,004 was 8.7 percent up on the prior-year period (2006: 78,219).

Ralph Weyler, Member of the Board of Management at AUDI AG for Marketing and Sales, commented: "We will end this year having sold more than our anticipated total of 950,000 vehicles. Despite the end of production of our highest-volume model and the difficulties experienced by the German market in 2007, we will notch up our twelfth record year in a row."

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