Volvo CEO Lex Kerssemakers said the automaker is looking to continue its growth that it has enjoyed in 2016.
Volvo Cars plans to use its recent success to secure additional financing.
The premium carmaker announced it is seeking to raise $575 million through a bond issue. It is Volvo’s first foray into the global corporate bond markets in its 89-year history. The Swedish-Chinese company is slated to begin a road show for potential investors this week.
The proceeds from the bond issue will be for general corporate purposes and are aimed at increasing the company’s financial flexibility and diversifying its funding sources, the company said in a statement.
Last week, Volvo Cars announced a robust start to 2016 with revenues for the first quarter up 24% year-on-year and an operating profit margin of 7.5%.
Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars, said: “Volvo’s global transformation is gathering pace. After a strong first three months of the year, both sales and profitability are expected to increase in FY2016 compared to last year.”
Volvo Car Group, owned by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., reported recently retail sales of its models grew 11.3% in April, marking the 11th straight month of year-on-year growth for the automaker.
Volvo's XC90 has been leading the way for the Swedish-Chinese automaker when it comes to sales in 2016.
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Volvo said in statement that strong demand for its new XC90, a SUV that is its first model developed under Geely ownership, helped drive sales to a total 42,434 cars in the month. The XC60 remained its top-selling model.
The company said it sales grew in all major regions except China during April.
Volvo Car USA reported a 33.1% increase in and year-to-date sales are up 22.7% over the first four months of 2015.
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Sales for the month of April were led by the award-winning XC90, which recently has been awarded a Five-Star Crash Rating by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the highest overall ranking available from the agency.
“With 33% growth for the month versus 2015, and 10 consecutive months of double digit growth, we are seeing the positive impact of the award-winning XC90,” said Lex Kerssemakers, president and CEO, Volvo Car USA. “This, coupled with the fact that we have already exceeded pre-orders for the S90 is quite telling of what is to come from Volvo.”
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Volvo is in the midst of an $11 billion transformation plan that has involved the development of its own modular vehicle architecture, a new engine range, global manufacturing capability, a renewed product range and innovations in safety, autonomous driving and connectivity.