Vehicle manufacturer Mazda has published an update on the firm's corporate sales for the first nine months of 2014 and has highlighted a considerable boost in the company's fleet business.

Overall, the company reported a 34 per cent annual upturn in activity within the fleet segment between January and the end of September this year. This impressive growth is reflected against an average industry-wide increase of 7.4 per cent over the same period.

Mazda fleet sales totalled just over 11,000 vehicles during the first nine months of the year and accounted for approximately 35 per cent of all registrations for the company. Overall, the firm sold 31,400 models during this period, ensuring it remains on track for a third successive year of more than 20 per cent growth.

The most popular models purchased by fleet buyers this year were shown to be the Mazda3, Mazda CX-5 and Mazda6, with a year-on-year increase in sales for each of the last two models. The Mazda3 was officially launched at the start of 2014.

Mazda head of fleet Steve Tomlinson commented: "More than 40 per cent of the growth in core fleet sales has come from the all-new Mazda3."

Outstanding fuel efficiency and excellent performance were highlighted as the main drivers of growth across the manufacturer's fleet model range, with buyers continuing to focus on areas that can not only help them to save money, but also reduce their environmental impact in the coming years.

It was therefore shown to be a positive year to date, but the future also looks bright for the manufacturer, as Mr Tomlinson concluded: "The forward fleet order bank is strong and traction continues to increase particularly in respect of the all-new Mazda3 as it increasingly wins a place on company car policies."