JAGUAR'S international sales success story continues with a record 40,000 cars sold in the first five months of the year, writes David Duffy.

World-wide sales in the first five months of this year were 80 per cent higher than the same period last year when Jaguar sold 22,370 cars.

Jaguar's managing director Jonathan Browning said: "This is an outstanding start to the new millennium. During the first five months of the year our sales increased in virtually every one of the sixty plus markets where we sell Jaguar cars."

Spearheading Jaguar's sales success is the S-Type sports saloon, which was launched in the spring of 1999. By the end of May this year, Jaguar had sold 64,157 S-Types since the car was first launched. A total of 25,356 S-Types have been sold in the first five months of this year.

In the United States Jaguar's biggest single market 18,662 cars were sold during the January/May period, double the number of cars sold by Jaguar in the USA in the same period last year. Jaguar S-Types accounted for 11,017 sales.

One of Jaguar's biggest growth markets is Italy. During the first five months of the year sales increased by 178 per cent with 2000 Jaguars being retailed to Italian luxury car buyers. The new S-Type sports saloon accounted for 1,675 sales in the January/May period.

In the United Kingdom, despite competitive marketing conditions, sales increased by 28 per cent to 6,769 cars during the January/May period. The S-Type accounted for 1,993 sales during the period.