(June 10, 2012) ROLLE, Switzerland — Despite the economic uncertainty in some European markets, which continues to impact all manufacturers, Nissan reported last week that it has maintained sales momentum. Nissan in Europe had sales of 52,354 units in May, lifting volume for the first five months of the year to over 300,000 units.

The solid monthly performance means, for the January-May period, Nissan's average share of the European market stands at nearly 4% compared to 3.7% over the same period last year.

Demand for the Sunderland-built Qashqai crossover remains strong, as does the popularity of Nissan's growing range of light commercial vehicles.

The Nissan Qashqai has
been a big seller in Europe

It was announced last month that the LCV range will receive a boost in the next financial year when the innovative 100% electric e-NV200 van enters production in Barcelona.

Based on the existing and conventionally-powered NV200, which is also built in Barcelona, e-NV200 will underline Nissan's leadership of the Electric Vehicle segment and support the company's goal of becoming the largest LCV manufacturer in the world by 2016.

Nissan Europe Sales Vice President, Guillaume Cartier, said: "It's clear that overall demand across Europe continues to be impacted by wider financial uncertainty, particularly in the south of the region.

"However, within this context Nissan's performance in Europe so far this year is extremely encouraging and our sales volume is up by around 3.5% for the first five months.

"We are achieving this thanks to the breadth of our model range which allows us to compete strongly across many different segments, while our growing presence in Russia - where demand remains healthy - is helping to off-set weaker markets."