While Fiat saw sales plunge in Europe last year, in
its other key global market, Brazil,
it was a very different story as it set a new all-time
record for both production and sales, posting the best
performance in its 36-year operating history in the
country.
Full-year sales of cars and light
commercial vehicles totalled 838,219 units, representing
an 11.1% increase over the prior year (754,276 units)
and a 10.2% increase over the previous sales record of
760,495 units set in 2010.
Leader for the past 11 years,
Fiat has outperformed the Brazilian market. Meanwhile,
sales of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles
increased 6.1% in 2012 to 3,634,510 units (3,426,290
units sold in 2011). As a consequence, Fiat increased
its share to 23.1% from 22% in 2011.
"This year’s performance, our
best in the 36 years since we began operating in Brazil,
was attributable to the fact that we anticipated the
market recovery and were ready to ramp up production at
just the right moment to ensure we gained market
position and share, "said Cledorvino Belini, Chairman of
Fiat/Chrysler for Latin America.
Significant contributors to
that market performance in 2012 were the Uno, the
brand’s leading model with 255,149 units sold, and the
Strada, with 117,464 units sold.
Fiat also set an all-time
production record in Brazil with 759,000 cars and light
commercial vehicles produced, representing a 12.5%
increase over 2011 (675,000 units) and a 10% increase
over the previous record of 690,000 units set in 2010.
December
The full-year results also reflect the strong
performance of the Brazilian market in December, with
sales of cars and light commercial vehicles up 15.8%
over November to 343,744 units. Fiat posted December
sales of 74,465 units.
