Airbus sold 186 aircraft in November

Airbus confirmed on Friday it had sold 186 aircraft in November, putting it on the verge of meeting its goal for the full year but failing to close a gap with rival Boeing .

Between January and November, Airbus sold 646 aircraft, or a net total of 585 after adjusting for cancellations.

Airbus delivered 516 aircraft in the same period.

The European planemaker announcement confirms figures reported by Reuters on Monday.

Airbus has set a target of 650 plane sales in 2012.

Boeing sold 1,156 jets between January 1 and December 4 and took cancellations for 104, leaving net orders of 1,052, according to latest available data on the company's website.

Boeing delivered 537 aircraft in the first 11 months.

Airbus last lost the annual order race to Boeing in 2006 and has outdelivered its rival for the past nine years.

It said November's activity included 100 orders from an unidentified customer for A320 family aircraft.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher, Cyril Altmeyer)