Volvo Records Sales of 141,609 Cars in Third Quarter, Down 10.7% Year on Year
Key Facts
Volvo Cars said global sales totaled 141,609 cars in the third quarter of 2026, down 10.7% from the same period a year earlier. The decline puts the company’s performance under simultaneous pressure in key markets, particularly China and the Americas, despite sales growth in Europe. On October 2, the company warned of a significant negative impact on quarterly underlying earnings and cash flow, while withdrawing its previous annual guidance. Revenue and net profit or loss figures for the third quarter could not be verified from the results report published on October 23, as the report link returned an error when opened. Sales figures therefore remain the available numerical indicator of quarterly performance and, on their own, do not establish that the company swung to a net loss, as stated in the previous draft.
The contraction was steepest in Greater China, where sales fell 40.6% to 20,284 cars from the same period a year earlier. The company attributed the performance to competitive and pricing pressure from local manufacturers and a weak macroeconomic environment. Chief Commercial Officer Erik Severinson said that “the decline in the Chinese market showed no signs of easing.” In its July pre-close presentation, the company had forecast a 14% contraction in China’s premium car market during 2026. That forecast reflects the scale of the challenge the company faces in its largest Asian market, according to its estimates published before the quarterly results.
In the Americas, sales fell 14% to 30,777 cars. The company said weaker consumer confidence, intensifying competition in the sport utility vehicle segment, and a slow recovery in demand for electric and plug-in hybrid cars contributed to the decline. Severinson described the recovery in the U.S. premium car segment as having “remained below our previous expectations.” The company’s July presentation raised its forecast for a contraction in the global premium car segment in 2026 to 5%, from a forecast of a 4% contraction in April. This places the decline in U.S. sales in the context of a weaker market than the company had estimated earlier in the year.
Electrified cars, including fully electric and plug-in hybrid cars, accounted for 53% of total global sales during the quarter. But the slow recovery in demand for these categories in the United States remained, according to the company, one of the factors weighing on sales in the Americas. On sales reporting, Volvo Cars said a data correction added 1,621 cars from July and August to retail deliveries for the third quarter of 2026. The company also revised third-quarter 2025 delivery figures by adding 1,899 cars. Both revisions affect the comparison base between the two periods, while the company kept its year-on-year decline at 10.7%.
On October 2, the company said it would not meet its previous 2026 guidance for sales volume and cash flow, and withdrew its near-term guidance statements without issuing an updated forecast. It attributed the deterioration in its outlook to further weakening in Chinese market conditions and a slower-than-expected recovery in the United States. It also warned of additional pressure on third-quarter underlying earnings and cash flow, on top of previously announced pressure from raw material costs, currency fluctuations, and higher depreciation and amortization. The company said these developments would have a “significant negative impact” on quarterly underlying earnings and cash flow. The warning dates to the October announcement before the results and does not constitute new guidance issued alongside them.
Despite withdrawing its near-term guidance, Volvo Cars said this did not change its long-term ambition to achieve strong positive cash flows and reach an 8% earnings before interest and taxes margin. The company did not provide an updated near-term forecast after withdrawing its previous guidance. In its sales results statement, it said it is now focused on increasing production of the EX60 model and starting production of new long-range plug-in hybrid cars. The fourth-quarter 2026 report is the next scheduled disclosure, and the company has set February 4, 2027, as its publication date.