(Reuters) - The Volkswagen brand's global deliveries fell 1.4% to 4.8 million vehicles in 2024, with battery-electric sales down around 2.5%, Europe's top carmaker said on Thursday.

"2024 was a difficult year worldwide," said Martin Sander, board member for sales, marketing and aftersales, pointing to a weak economy and tough competition in China, its biggest market.

Deliveries in China, where it is facing a growing swath of electric-only domestic rivals, fell 8.3% to 2.2 million vehicles.

Battery-electric vehicle sales came to just over 383,000, down from 394,000 last year, amid a regional slump in EV demand.

Still, North America deliveries improved significantly to over 592,000, an 18.4% jump.

The Volkswagen Group is expected to release its deliveries next week, with full-year results due for 2024 on March 11.