Volkswagen Global Sales Fall 5% In First Half Of 2009

Volkswagen group's global vehicle sales fell 5 percent to 3.1 million vehicles in the first half, but the company's nine brands, which will soon include Porsche as a 10th marque, boosted market share.

By comparison, General Motors Co.'s first-half sales fell 21.8 percent to 3.5 million, the company reported earlier this week. At the end of 2008, GM ranked second in global sales and VW was No. 3. Toyota, which has not reported first-half sales yet, ranked No. 1 last year.

VW said it increased its share of the world passenger-car market to 12.0 percent in the first half, compared with 9.9 percent the year before, amid an 18 percent slump in the overall global car market.