Mercedes Targets 7% Annual Sales Growth

Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz brand, which sold a record 1.4 million-plus cars and crossover/SUVs in 2013, aims to push sales above 1.5 million this year and to more than 1.6 million in 2015.

Ola Kaellenius, who took over as Mercedes' executive vice president of sales and marketing in October, tells Automotive News Europe growth will be driven mainly by the brand's redesigned C-Class cars. The new lineup will debut in Europe this spring and several months later in the U.S.

Kaellenius predicts Mercedes will continue to gain market share in Europe this year. "We've got momentum," he declares to ANE.