Rows of new Passats await delivery at the Chattanooga Volkswagen manufacturing plant at the Enterprise South industrial park.GLOBAL 2010 SALES LEADERS
ToyotaGeneral MotorsVolkswagen AGHyundai KiaFord MotorSource: The New York Times
Chattanooga’s Volkswagen plant and rapid growth in emerging markets will help the automaker likely race to the top among the world’s automakers in 2011, officials said Monday.
“Volkswagen Chattanooga is an important cornerstone of Volkswagen Group’s global strategy,” said Frank Fischer, chief executive of the automaker’s Enterprise South industrial park operation.
Citing several auto analysts, Bloomberg News reported Monday that VW’s sales, third in 2010, will probably top Toyota and General Motors worldwide in 2011.
VW sales globally are expected to jump 13 percent to 8.1 million vehicles this year, based on the average of three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. GM sales will gain about 8 percent to 7.55 million, while Toyota will drop 9 percent to 7.27 million, according to the survey.