Mercedes-Benz suffered a 5.0% drop in sales in 2021, as it was heavily impacted by semiconductor supply-chain bottlenecks, which gripped the automotive industry.
The German firm sold 2,093,496 vehicles between January and December 2021 – 70,691 units down on pandemic-blighted 2020 – and was hit particularly badly in the fourth quarter, when sales dropped by 24.7%.
Sales of plug-in vehicles climbed significantly, though, with 227,458 sold, representing growth of 69.3%. Of these, nearly 99,301 were pure-electric - a 90.3% uptick.
The firm's luxury, performance and off-road sub-brands also recorded positive results.
