March AUDI Sales still strong

German automaker Audi AG said Tuesday that worldwide deliveries of its cars rose 10 percent in March compared with the same month last year, with its A3 and A6 lines boosting demand. The Ingolstadt, Germany-based automaker, the luxury arm of Volkswagen AG, said deliveries last month rose to more than 93,600 cars. For the first three months of the year, deliveries were 226,700 vehicles, a 16 percent rise from the first three months of 2005. Sales of its A3 hatchback model rose 22 percent in the first quarter, with 65,400 cars sold, while its A6 line saw 59,500 cars delivered, up 49 percent from a year ago. The A4 line accounted for 82,300 vehicle deliveries, up some 3 percent on the year. Despite the increases, which the company said were records for both March and the quarter, shares of the company fell more than 3 percent to close at 320.50 euros ($387.51) in Frankfurt trading.