• Volvo saw its sales jump by 31 percent in May compared to the same period last year.
• That's great for Volvo, but more importantly, it’s a good sign for the industry.
At the beginning of each month, we are bombarded by manufacturers' sales results, telling us how extraordinary the previous month had been. It's their job to showcase their products and their good performance.
It's not always newsworthy, but when a particular situation catches our attention, we take notice. Like this 31-percent increase in Volvo sales in May, compared with the company's performance for the same period in 2022. Sales rose by 40 percent in Europe, while increasing by 49 percent in China and 14 percent in the United States.
In concrete terms, the Swedish company sold 60,398 vehicles in the 31 days of May. That means more people bought a Volvo product, but it also reflects a significant upturn in business compared to a difficult 2022, a year in which the effects of Covid-19, supply chain problems and microchip shortages were still being felt.
Not that everything is quite back to normal, but across the industry we're starting to see encouraging signs. There is still work to be done, however. Builders' and consumers' concerns have not yet dissipated, as high prices persist.
The ongoing challenges have led Volvo to embark recently on a cost-cutting drive that has resulted in the elimination of 1,300 jobs. That's the less-good news. The company also announced last month that it was delaying the start of assembly of its all-electric EX90 SUV, which now won’t happen until 2024.