Lotus's January sales rose 135 percent, Smart surged 207 percent, MG was up 4.3 percent, Volvo grew 2.7 percent, Porsche gained 1.4 percent and Lamborghini finished the month with a 1.1 percent increase.
The models that propelled the brands' growth in January were the Lotus Exige, Smart ForTwo, MG HS, Volvo XC40, Porsche Taycan and the Lamborghini Aventador, according to figures from market researcher JATO Dynamics.
Meanwhile, 16 brands including Suzuki, Maserati, Toyota, Jeep, Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, Dacia and Tesla reported month-on-month sales declines but still beat the overall market.
A number of models increased sales in January despite retail challenges caused by the pandemic, including the Ford Kuga, Smart ForFour and Land Rover Defender, which rose more than 350 percent to 871 sales from a low base the year before.