Volkswagen Group is the world's biggest carmaker
Volkswagen has beaten Toyota to become the world's biggest carmaker in 2016. Toyota was the biggest carmaker globally for the past four years. Toyota has revealed that it produced 10.21 million cars and sold 10.17 million cars globally in 2016. In comparison, Volkswagen has said that it delivered 10.30 million cars in 2016. General Motors is expected to be the third largest carmaker although it hasn't revealed its sales data yet.
The Volkswagen Group registered a growth in sales of 3.8 per cent in 2016. In December last year, it saw a 11.8 per cent rise in sales with 933,300 vehicles delivered. Commenting on the company's sales performance, Matthias Muller, CEO of Volkswagen Group, said, "2016 was a very challenging year for us. We made strides in resolving and overcoming the diesel crisis and at the same time initiated a fundamental change process with 'Together - Strategy 2025'. Nonetheless, we managed to stabilise operating business in difficult conditions."
As a part of the 'Together - Strategy 2025', Volkswagen will focus more on electric as well as autonomous vehicles. The company is planning to launch over 30 electric vehicles in the next 10 years. Volkswagen AG owns Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Ducati, Lamborghini, Porsche, Scania, Skoda, Seat and Man.
General Motors was the world's biggest carmaker for almost 70 years. Toyota overtook the crown in 2008. In 2011, however, owing to the tsunami that struck Japan, Toyota's production was affected. General Motors was the third biggest carmaker in 2015.
