Welcome back ladies and gentlemen; I hope you all had a fantastic August weekend.  To kick things off this morning, DaimlerChrysler has published details how sales of the Mercedes Car Group's Mercedes-Benz, Maybach and smart brands fared for the month of July, which, despite a disappointing 13 percent decrease here in the U.S., actually managed to achieve a slight gain.  In total, July's sales amounted to 103,700 units, an increase of 1.3 percent when compared to July 2006. This figure brings the Mercedes Car Group's year-to-date sales up to 721,400 units, a decrease of 1.1 percent when compared to 2006's seven-month ytd total.

Individually, sales of the Mercedes-Benz division remained positive, with the luxury division noting a 1.1 percent increase in July with 93,800 units sold. Mercedes' ytd sales have also managed to stay in the black, with MB achieving a 1.7 percent increase over 2006's seven-month ytd total with 669,500 units sold.

As for the smart brand, sales in July noted a modest gain, increasing 3.0 percent to 9,900 units. Through the first seven months of the year however, the mini-car brand is down significantly, currently 27.5 percent in the negative.

To learn more about the Mercedes Car Group's July figures as well as how sales fared in each of the division's key market sectors, keep reading for the official press release.

Enjoy.


OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE


Mercedes-Benz posts record sales in first seven months of 2007

• Mercedes Car Group delivers 103,700 vehicles to customers in July
  
  
• Demand for C-Class sedan increases by 67 percent to 24,800 units
  
  
• 9,800 units of the new smart fortwo sold in July, double the figure for July 2006
  
  

Stuttgart, Aug 03, 2007
With deliveries of 103,700 passenger vehicles in July, the Mercedes Car Group has slightly increased its sales result compared to the same month last year (102,300 units). Since the beginning of the year, 721,400 units of the Mercedes-Benz, Maybach, and smart brands have been sold all over the world (January-July 2006: 729,600 units). Sales of Mercedes-Benz vehicles rose slightly in July 2007 to 93,800 units (July 2006: 92,700 units). Deliveries of Mercedes-Benz passenger vehicles rose to 669,500 units from January through July, setting a new record (January-July 2006: 658,000).

In the luxury segment, Mercedes-Benz remains the market leader with a clear edge over its competitors: In July, sales in this segment increased by 13 percent to a new record of 9,200 units.

The new generation of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class is also continuing its very positive development. Since the beginning of the year, 136,300 E-Class vehicles have been sold, five percent more than in the same period of 2006.

The new Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan is also extremely popular. Demand for the model increased by 67 percent in July to a total of 24,800 units worldwide.The new model has recently been launched in the United States and in the markets for right-hand drive vehicles. From now on, Mercedes-Benz dealers will also offer three additional engine variants for the model, which traditionally account for high volume sales: the C 180, the C 230, and the C 200 cdi.

Following the market launch of the C-Class sedan, the Mercedes Car Group has increased its sales in the Asia/Pacific region by 19 percent in July 2007 to the new record level of 10,500 passenger vehicles (July 2006: 8.800). Vehicle deliveries in Western Europe amounted to 65,600 units, a slight increase on the previous year (64.800). The Mercedes Car Group also posted an increase in Germany with two percent in July, delivering a total of 27,600 vehicles to customers (July 2006: 27.100).

The smart fortwo, which was launched on the market in late March 2007, continues to be very well received by customers. In July 2007, 9,800 units of the new model were sold - double the figure for July 2006 (4,700 units). In spite of focusing the overall model range on just the smart fortwo, sales of smart brand vehicles in July totaled 9,900, three percent above the previous year (July 2006: 9,600).

Overview of Mercedes Car Group Sales