VW Narrowly Outsells GM

Volkswagen Group reports global passenger vehicle sales of 7.40 million in the first nine months of 2014, narrowly surpassing the 7.37 million posted by General Motors Co.

Toyota Motor Corp. won't announce sales numbers until the end of October but is expected to retain its top ranking.

Last year Toyota reported a full-year total of 9.98 million sales compared with a revised 9.73 million for VW and 9.71 million for GM. VW sales chief Christian Klinger said last week the company may reach 10 million sales in 2014. The company aims to outsell Toyota by 2018.