China helps drive Rolls to record year

Luxury British car brand now plans expansion of dealerships across nation

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Ltd, the luxury British car producer, made around 30 percent of its total sales last year in the Chinese mainland, its second-largest market in 2012.

Without publishing exact figures for individual markets, Chief Executive Officer Torsten Muller-Otvos told China Daily that the exclusive brand sold a total 3,575 cars in 2012 worldwide, in its third consecutive year of record sales.

The US remained its biggest market, with China now a very close second, he said.

"The growth in the first half was slower due to the challenging local economic climate, but we have seen a remarkable pick-up since the second half as the economy recovered," said Muller-Otvos.

In 2011, its sales figures for China overtook those in the United States, to be the brand's largest market.

Though the US market reversed that trend in 2012, the Chinese mainland is now only around 40 to 50 units behind it, said Muller-Otvos.

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