BMW continued to be the world’s leading premium car company in April, with a sales increase of 6.1 percent. A total of 145,505 BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce automobiles were sold worldwide last month. Over the past four months, deliveries climbed 9.8% to a new record of 571,040.
“Following on from the best first quarter in the company’s history, we have just reported our most successful April sales ever. This momentum will continue as we add new vehicles throughout the year, such as the BMW 6 Series Gran Coupé in June”, said Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management, Sales and Marketing BMW, in Munich.
BMW's April sales rose 25.1 percent in Asia with 39,770 vehicles delivered. China accounted for 27,197 deliveries, an increase of 30.8 percent. In the U.S., 26,793 vehicles were delivered, an increase of 6.1 percent.
Market woes dampened European sales slightly, down 2 percent at 68,033 vehicles sold. But several markets in northern and central Europe increased. Sales in the Netherlands rose 29 percent to 2,100, France rose 9.2 percent to 5,150, and Austria 9.4 percent to 2,057. German registration of BMW and Mini increased 6.2 percent to 27,192, while Greek, Spanish and Portuguese figures fell.
BMW: Worldwide sales of BMW brand vehicles climbed to 7.4 percent to 121,476 in April and have risen 10.1 percent since the start of the year. At the end of April, the BMW 1 Series, the X1, the BMW 3 Series sedan and Convertible, the BMW 5 Series, the BMW X5 and the BMW 6 Series were all leaders in their segments. Demand for the BMW 1 Series 5-door Hatch rose 68.3 percent to 14,551 vehicles, and BMW 3 Series Sedan sales rose 26.3 percent to 24,006 vehicles. Sales of the BMW X3 increased 23.5 percent to 12,229 units and the BMW 6 Series notched up 1,561 sales, up 122.4 percent from last year.
Mini: April sales stayed flat overall, off 0.2 percent at 23,789 vehicles delivered. However France reported a 22.2 percent boost to 1,561 units, and Italian sales rose 13.9 percent to 1,652. The brand experienced dynamic growth in Asia, with a 32.4 percent rise to 1,353 in Japan, 36.5 percent to 1,563 in China and 50 percent in Korea to 450 units. Year-to-date, Mini sales are up 8.6 percent, at 92,000.––Paul Duchene
