(Bloomberg) -- Stellantis NV’s sales surged in the third quarter thanks to strong vehicle prices and higher deliveries led by models like the Jeep Compass. Positive currency effects also boosted the result. 

Net revenue climbed 29% to €42.1 billion ($41.3 billion), the maker of Ram pickups and Fiat cars said Thursday, beating a consensus forecast. Stellantis reaffirmed a goal of double-digit returns on adjusted operating income for the full year. 

“We are still very positive about the full year financial performance,” Chief Financial Officer Richard Palmer said on a call with reporters. Third-quarter “growth was driven by all of our regions.”

Stellantis and carmaking peers, while increasingly contending with weaker economic conditions, are still benefiting from pent-up demand as supply-chain challenges continue. Since the start of the year, company vehicle inventory has ballooned to 275,000 units, up from 179,000, because of logistical challenges particularly in Europe, Stellantis said Thursday.

As the economic outlook darkens, automakers are under pressure to finance ambitious electric-car rollout plans. Stellantis is targeting more than 75 fully-electric models by 2030 with annual sales of 5 million vehicles, while maintaining double-digit returns over that time.

Car demand in the US, the company’s biggest profit contributor, is “still pretty strong” and the market continues to be supply-constrained, Palmer said on the call. In contrast, there is “some slower intake of orders” in Europe “but the order bank itself is still very stable” taking Stellantis “well into the middle of next year.”

“At the moment, we don’t have any clear indication that demand is significantly softening” in Europe, the CFO said. “We are watching it very carefully because the macro environment is clearly very challenging.”

Delivering cars to customers in Europe continues to be a challenge due to supply constraints linked to semiconductor shortages and a lack of both drivers and trucks, he said. Stellantis expects to resolve these issues this quarter, Palmer said. 

Europe’s second-biggest carmaker’s consolidated shipments rose 13% during the quarter to 1.3 million vehicles. 

Stellantis shares traded in Milan have declined 18% this year. That compares with a 3.2% gain of smaller French peer Renault SA.

(Updates with CFO comments from sixth paragraph)

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.