Volvo Cars reported global sales of 141,609 cars in the third quarter of 2026, down 10.7 per cent from the same period last year. Sales during the quarter were impacted by a further deterioration in market conditions in China, where industry volumes remained under significant pressure, as well as a slower-than-expected recovery in the US.

"The market downturn in China showed no signs of easing, and the recovery in the US premium segment remained below our earlier expectations," said Erik Severinson, Chief Commercial Officer at Volvo Cars. "This impacted our third-quarter sales, and the same challenging market conditions have led third-party analysts to lower their sales forecasts for the premium car market for 2026."

At the same time, performance in Europe remained resilient, supported by strong demand and order intake for fully electric cars.

The company's sales of fully electric models grew by 29 per cent and accounted for 32 per cent of all cars sold. Sales of electrified models, including fully electric and plug-in hybrid cars, represented 53 per cent of all cars sold during the quarter.

"In Europe, we continue to see strong demand for our new cars, led by the EX60 and our recently launched long-range plug-in hybrids," said Erik Severinson. "We are now focused on ramping up production of the EX60 and starting production of the new long-range plug-in hybrids."

In the Europe and RoW region, retail deliveries remained steady, with sales of 90,548 cars, up 2 per cent compared with the same period last year. This was driven by a 51 per cent increase in sales of fully electric cars. Overall, sales of electrified models increased by 12 per cent and accounted for 64 per cent of all cars sold in the region.

In the Americas region, sales decreased by 14 per cent to 30,777 cars. The decline was driven by continued weak consumer sentiment, increasing competitive pressure in the SUV segment and a high comparative base from last year, when sales of electrified cars rose before the expiry of consumer subsidies. Sales were also impacted by the slow recovery in demand for fully electric and plug-in hybrid cars.

In the Greater China region, deliveries stood at 20,284 cars, down 40.6 per cent compared with the same period last year. Sales were affected by growing competitive and pricing pressure from local manufacturers, as well as the subdued macroeconomic environment. The premium car market in China remained under pressure, with a sharp double-digit decline in volumes.

Note: Previous retail delivery figures in China were slightly affected by a reporting data error. Following a data correction, 1,621 cars from July and August have been included in Q3 2026 retail deliveries. Q3 2025 retail deliveries have also been revised by 1,899 cars.