If Toyota is no longer the world's largest carmaker, who is?
Volkswagen in the first half of the year overtook Toyota to become the world鈥檚 biggest automaker, capturing the no. 1 spot long coveted by the German firm. But most analysts are not impressed because its profit margins still lag Toyota.
Volkswagen reported earlier this month it had sold vehicles from January through June, trailed by Toyota鈥檚 5.02 million, according to sales figures it released on Tuesday.
General Motors came in third, with 4.86 million vehicles sold.
Though Volkswagen announced its goal to claim the crown as far back as eight years ago, the company has since moved to downplay the news, describing its latest performance figures as 鈥溾�榮atisfactory鈥� in a difficult environment,鈥� reported .
A spokesperson : 鈥淲e do not comment on the figures of other automakers. The goal of the Volkswagen Group is to focus on qualitative growth and not being No. 1听in sales.鈥�
News of its success听听most in the industry, according to March reports. 鈥淢ake no mistake, almost everybody in the automotive industry expects Volkswagen to pass Toyota and become No. 1 in the world this year,鈥� reported CNBC鈥檚 Phil LeBeau.
Some experts have said Volkswagen is overreliant on China, where rapid growth of the car market has slowed. The automaker鈥檚 annual production there is 3.7 million vehicles, and by 2019 is projected to , said CEO Martin Winterkorn to CNBC.
But 鈥淰olkswagen Passenger Cars brand was not听immune to current trends in China,鈥� in a statement.
This year, Volkswagen has sold 1.74 million vehicles in China, compared to Toyota鈥檚 512,800, reported . And what wasn鈥檛 sold there was compensated 鈥渁s car demand in Europe accelerated at the fastest pace in 5 1/2 years,鈥� said the report.
But they won鈥檛 be able to depend on demand in Western Europe, which experts say is relatively stagnant and particularly exacerbated by the uncertainty swirling around Greece鈥檚 debt crisis.
Now, the German automaker is preparing to invest more in the US, where they were outperformed by Toyota. A new SUV will be introduced next year to meet American consumer demands, and Volkwagen鈥檚 Chattanooga plant will be upping its , Dr. Winterkorn told CNBC in March.
鈥淲e procrastinated in the US, it's true,鈥� Winterkorn said. 鈥淎nd we are changing that.鈥�
The chief executive has also emphasized Volkswagen鈥檚 target of an 8 percent operating profit margin. In the 2015 fiscal year, the company took in profits of compared to Toyota鈥檚听.
As carmakers battle to remain competitive, experts say they would be right to prioritize profitability over sales volume. This victory offers little more than bragging rights in an extremely close race, reported 听
鈥淪ales volume you can buy,鈥� AutoTrader.com analyst Michelle Krebs 鈥淚 think the race for profitability is the right race. So if I were running an automaker that鈥檚 the number I would be looking at.鈥�
