Volkswagen, the German automaker, has established a new record by selling more than 4 million vehicles during the first six months of the year.

Deliveries for Europe’s largest car company rose by 14 percent over the same period last year, driven primarily by solid growth in Asia.

Asian sales climbed by 19 percent to 1.2-million, mostly in China. Sales in Europe grew by 9.3 percent, principally in central and eastern Europe. South American sales rose by 11 percent.

However, the greatest regional growth (by percentage) came from North America, where sales rocketed by 21 percent.

Christian Klinger, the company’s chief, said in a statement: Success in the second six months won't be automatic. Plenty of hard work lies ahead to keep our deliveries during the second half of the year at a high level.

Volkswagen popular models include the Skoda, Seat and Audi and VW brands.