Special Report: Global Financial Crisis

    FRANKFURT, Germany, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- Luxury carmaker Audi said on Thursday its global sales, going against the world trend, surpassed the 1million mark in 2008, the first time in its history.

    It sold 1.0034 million cars worldwide in 2008, an increase of 4.1 percent compared to 2007, the company said.

    A range of new models contributed to the boost in sales, it said.

    In December 2008, its global sales increased by 17 percent over the same month in 2007, to 82,800 from 70,523.

    Also in December, Audi sales in West Europe rose 23 percent over December 2007, to 53,900. The year 2008 saw a 2.5 percent rise in sales in the region, to 667,000. The Asia-Pacific region witnessed a 16 percent rise in sales in December, to 14,000.

    Affected by the financial crisis and economic recession, Audi sales in the United States in 2008 dropped to 87,760, a fall of 6.1 percent over 2007.

    The increase in sales growth for Audi in 2008 was not easy to achieve as the global automobile market is experiencing a downturn in sales, market observers said.

    In December 2008, car sales in the U.S. dropped 36 percent over November, while in Britain and Germany, sales fell 21 percent and 7 percent respectively.