BMW sales rev up to near 2.5m cars with 1.1 per cent increase
Luxury car maker BMW boosted sales 1.1 per cent in 2018, selling 2,490,664 cars worldwide, its eighth consecutive year of record sales.
The company predicted continuing sales increases in 2019, despite what it described as challenging market conditions.
BMW management board member Pieter Nota said: “While we expect market conditions to remain challenging this year, new models like the all-new BMW X7 and the seventh generation of the BMW 3 Series, combined with an ever-greater focus on our customers and their needs, mean we at the BMW group will continue on our successful course. We expect to grow sales slightly in 2019, while maintaining our clear focus on profitability.”
The BMW brand sold 2,125,026 cars in 2018, a 1.8 per cent increase on the previous year.
The company said its biggest growth drivers were its BMW X sports utility models which increased sales 12.1 per cent to 792,590 and its 5 Series model which increased sales 12.7 per cent in 2018 with a total of 328,997 delivered to customers last year.
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“We are proud to have achieved our best-ever annual sales result, despite a number of important model-changeovers and significant, ongoing headwinds in several major markets,” Nota said. “2018 saw the introduction of several exciting brand new models including the BMW X2 and the BMW 8 Series, as well as the launch of the new generation BMW X4 and BMW X5 and the long-awaited BMW Z4. I am confident the momentum generated by these new models will continue through 2019.”
However, sales of Mini brand cars slipped 2.8 per cent to 361,531. BMW said it hoped the introduction of the electric Mini in 2019 would revive sales.
The German car maker sold 142,617 electric cars in 2018, a 38 per cent increase on the previous year.
In the UK BMW sold 237,895 cars, a 1.4 per cent dip on the previous year, with growth boosted by a 7.7 per cent increase in sales in China and an 8.1 per cent increase in Latin America, accounting for 639,953 and 54,858 cars respectively.
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