Luxury Rolls-Royce car sales soar worldwide

LONDON - Sales of luxury Rolls-Royce cars, which cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, have soared worldwide.

The Britain-based manufacturer said Tuesday that global sales in the first half of the year were up 33 percent compared with the same period in 2013.

Growth was strongest in Europe, up over 60 percent, with Asia Pacific sales up almost 40 percent, the company said in a statement. Middle East sales were also strong, up 30 percent, with the United States and China also seeing double-digit growth.

Germany's BMW, which owns Rolls-Royce, saw vehicles sales rise across the group almost seven percent in the period. While BMW car sales were up 10 percent, sales of its Mini vehicles dropped just over 10 percent.