Audi said it would cut spare-part prices in China as global automakers rush to change their pricing strategies after Chinese anti-monopoly regulators began probing the auto industry.
The National Development and Reform Commission, China’s state planner, is investigating the industry amid domestic media complaints that foreign carmakers, using a dominant market position, are overcharging Chinese customers on products and spare parts.
Germany’s premium automakers are benefiting most from a boom in UK car sales that has far outpaced the recovery in the rest of Europe.
Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are winning sales and market share from mass-market manufacturers such as Ford and General Motors’ Vauxhall brand after expanding their lineups and offering more fuel-efficient vehicles, analysts say.
The European Commission said it has started a probe into state aid granted by Hungary to Audi to see whether it met EU rules.
Audi’s A3 compact and Mercedes-Benz’s S-class flagship helped the two German automakers narrow their sales gaps with global luxury-car leader BMW in the first half.
Six-month auto sales by BMW’s namesake brand exceeded Audi’s deliveries by 16,997 vehicles compared with a difference of 23,760 a year earlier, according to figures released by the manufacturers this week. BMW’s lead against Mercedes shrank 6 percent to 102,827 cars.
Audi said global sales in the first six months rose 11 percent to a record 869,350 vehicles thanks to strong demand for the compact A3 range.
