Sales of Mercedes-Benz in China surged 25 percent in the first five months of this year to reach 13,122 units, Beijing Daily reported on Wednesday.

 

Till Becker, CEO of Daimler Chrysler in Northeast Asia attributed the sales increase to strong demand for the Benz-S series.

 

The report said the consumption tax introduced by China on April 1, which was aimed at discouraging consumers from buying cars with large engines seems to have had little impact on the sales of imported luxury sedans.

 

The 300C series, which is scheduled to be produced in Beijing by Mercedes-Benz (China), saw January to May sales jump 67 percent compared to the same period last year.

 

Meanwhile, the newspaper reported that sales of BMW's also grew by 50 percent in the first quarter of the year to reach 4,773 units.

 

(Xinhua News Agency July 6, 2006)