BMW Group speeds to 18% sales growth in April

The BMW Group reported strong sales growth once again in April. A total of 137,183 BMW, MINI and Rolls Royce brand vehicles were delivered to customers (prev. yr. 116,386/ +17.9%). For the year to the end of April, the BMW Group achieved a new sales high of 519,944 vehicles (prev. yr.: 432,016) – an increase of 20.4%.

Ian Robertson, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for Sales and Marketing:

“In April, our positive market development continued with a strong gain of nearly 18 per cent. We continued our balanced growth worldwide with an increase in sales across almost all regions and markets. Germany, the United States and China remain our three largest markets. But we also saw impressive growth in the dynamic young markets of Brazil, Russia, India, Korea and Turkey — the so-called BRIKT— countries.” Robertson continues: “We are on our way to achieve a 2011 sales volume of well over 1.5 million units, a new all-time high, with the BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands all achieving new sales volume records.”

BMW brand volumes increased by 14.8% in April to 113,078 vehicles (prev. yr. 98,488).  As of April 2011, sales of BMW brand vehicles were 19.2% higher than the previous year at 434,257 units (364,307).

The new BMW X3 continued to show strong growth. In April, sales surged 140% to 9,902 units (prev. yr. 4,126). The other BMW X models are also performing extremely well. High rates of growth were reported by the BMW X1 with a total of 10,846 vehicles delivered to customers in April (+34.3%). Sales of the large-size BMW X5 / X6 models climbed 12.7% year-on-year (11,730/prev. yr.: 10,406). The X models therefore account for 28.7% of the BMW brand’s product range. Demand for the new BMW 5 Series remains strong. With total sales of 24,944 vehicles in April (+98.5%) the BMW 5 Series is the clear leader in its segment.

The MINI brand also had a very successful month. Sales climbed to 23,839 vehicles (prev. yr. 17,719) – an increase of 34.5% over the same period last year. In China (1,400/ +89.2%), South Korea (300/ +130.8%) and Russia (165/ +283.7%) sales growth was in the three-digit percentage range. The number of MINI models through April this year rose to 84,698 (prev. yr. 67,251/ +25.9%) vehicles.

The Rolls-Royce brand also continues on its growth course. By the end of April of this year, the company increased sales to 989 vehicles (prev. yr. 458/ +115.9%). 266 automobiles were presented to customers in the month under review (prev. yr. 179/ +48.6%).

The BMW Group made strong retail gains in almost all markets in April. In Europe, sales increased by 7.5% to 69,398 units (prev. yr. 64,578). In the German market, 25,639 (prev.yr. 25,580/ +0.2%) vehicles of the BMW Group were registered. The BMW 5 Series and the BMW 7 Series lead their segments after this year’s first four months. More encouraging news from the German market came from our brands’ excellent ranking in the latest breakdown statistics from the Automobile Association, ADAC: The BMW X3, BMW 1 Series and MINI all took first place in their class, with top-three slots for the BMW 5 Series and the BMW 3 Series. With these results, the BMW Group performed better than any other manufacturer in Germany. Sales continued to grow dynamically across the American continent (31,491 units/ +18.0%). The U.S. is the BMW Group’s largest single market, accounting for 18.4% of sales (25,247 vehicles in April). The Asian markets also continued to grow in the month under review (31,803 units/ +54.2%): Some 20,800 customers purchased a new BMW or MINI model (prev. yr. 12,440 units/ +67.2%) in China (Mainland) alone.

BMW Motorrad significantly exceeded the high sales level of the previous year for the fourth consecutive month. In persistently difficult market conditions, global sales rose by 5% to 13,072 units in April. Worldwide a total of 36,181 BMW motorcycles were delivered to customers in the year to the end of April 2011. This represents an increase of 8.7% year-on-year. Husqvarna Motorcycles delivered 2,543 motorcycles (+11.5%) in the first four months of the year. 603 motorcycles were delivered in April (-6.1%).