Nissan's premium brand Infiniti global sales up 8 percent in September

By Norihiko Shirouzu

BEIJING (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co's premium brand Infiniti sold 21,523 vehicles globally in September, up 8 percent from a year earlier and pushing the brand's worldwide sales in the first nine months of this year to 182,884 vehicles, up 11 percent.

Infiniti's global chief executive Roland Krueger said in a statement growth over the past couple of months was fueled by strong sales of SUVs, as well as the significantly redesigned Q50 sedan. The Q50 hit the U.S. market in July and is being now launched around the world.

Infiniti's chief spokesman Trevor Hale said the Hong Kong-headquartered brand plans to build on that momentum by launching two additional redesigned models – both SUVs – over the next three to four months. He declined to elaborate.

In the United States, Infiniti sold 12,745 vehicles in September, up 12 percent from a year earlier. U.S. sales in the January-September period were 113,714 vehicles, up 18 percent.

Infiniti's China sales, meanwhile, totaled 4,479 vehicles last month, up 19 percent from a year earlier. Its volume in China during the first nine months of this year rose 16 percent from a year earlier to 33,804 vehicles.

In addition to redesigned SUV models, Hale said Infiniti plans to launch a long-wheel version of the Q50 sports sedan, called the Q50L, in China in the coming months. The car will be first shown at the Guangzhou auto show in November.

(Reporting By Norihiko Shirouzu, editing by David Evans)