Volvo Car Sales Fell 24.8% in April as Semiconductor Shortage, China Lockdowns Weighed

By Dominic Chopping

STOCKHOLM--Volvo Car AB said Wednesday that car sales fell 24.8% on year in April as semiconductor shortages weighed on production while Covid-19 lockdowns in China hit car deliveries.

The company has previously said that a supplier shortage of a specific type of semiconductor would impact production during the second quarter, but it said Wednesday that it considers it to be a temporary setback and expects the supply-chain restraints related to semiconductors to improve during the second half of the year.

"In April, Covid-19 lockdowns in eastern China impacted retail deliveries in China and added more challenges to already weakened global supply chains, resulting in additional loss of production," the company said.

The Swedish auto maker--majority owned by China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group--said it sold 47,150 cars in April, down from 62,724 in the same month last year.

In Europe, sales fell 23.2% to 19,822 cars, while sales in China dropped 47.8% to 8,579 cars. The company reported a sales decline of 9.2% in the U.S., to 10,022 cars.

Volvo's Recharge range of fully-electric or plug-in hybrid models accounted for 38.4% of all Volvo cars sold globally in April, while fully-electric models accounted for 10.0% of global sales.

The auto maker aims to become a fully-electric car maker by 2030.

Write to Dominic Chopping at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

05-04-22 0435ET