BMW Group Sales Growth Continues for Best Ever August

- Deliveries in August up 7.2% to total 156,437

- BMW brand grows 7.6% in August with 135,735 vehicles delivered

- Group year-to-date sales total 1,429,390, up 7.4%

- Strong momentum in Europe: +10.5% in first eight months

- MINI sales up 20.6% in year-to-date: deliveries total 211,826

Cross reference: Picture is available at AP Images (http://www.apimages.com) and http://www.presseportal.de/nr/28255/

MUNICH, Sept. 10, 2015 /CNW/ - The BMW Group achieved its best ever August sales result with deliveries of BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brand vehicles totalling 156,437 for the month, an increase of 7.2% compared with the same period last year. It's also been the company's best ever first eight months with year-to-date sales up 7.4% (1,429,390).

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150908/264547 )

"Whilst the general economic situation remains challenging in some markets, we are consistently selling more vehicles than ever before around the world," said Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Sales and Marketing BMW. "Although the rapid normalisation of the Chinese market has created some headwinds there, we are seeing excellent rates of growth in Europe, while many Asian markets and the NAFTA region are also developing very positively. We continue to follow our long-standing policy of balancing sales globally and avoiding dependency on any single market. With exciting new models like the 7 Series and the BMW X1 still to come this year, I remain confident that our current global sales growth will continue through 2015," he commented.

The BMW brand increased its global sales by 7.6% in August, with a total of 135,735 vehicles delivered to customers in the month. Sales for the year-to-date rose 5.5% to 1,215,298.

Sales growth in August was driven most strongly by the BMW brand's many recently introduced or refreshed models. Global customer deliveries of the BMW 1 Series stood at 11,498, a 4.8% increase on the same month last year. BMW 2 Series sales remain strong with a total of 12,648 units delivered in August. Deliveries of the recently updated BMW 3 Series rose 4.4% in the month, with 35,497 sold around the world. Meanwhile the BMW X4, introduced just over a year ago, saw its monthly sales jump nearly 90% to a total of 3,723. Customer deliveries of the BMW X6 more than doubled to total 3,082 in the month.

In the first eight months of 2015, a total of 16,800 BMW i vehicles were delivered to customers around the world.

August saw 20,471 customers around the world take delivery of a new MINI, an increase of 5.0% on the same month last year. Year-to-date sales climbed 20.6% to total 211,826. The brand has never previously sold so many vehicles in the first eight months of the year. So far this year, sales of the MINI 3 door grew by 18.7% (80,960) with customer deliveries of the new MINI 5 door totalling 57,364 in the same period.

All major global regions have achieved growth in August and the year-to-date, in line with the BMW Group's strategy of balanced global sales.

Europe has seen considerable momentum so far in 2015, with BMW and MINI combined sales up 10.5% on the same period last year (622,625). The BMW Group's fourth biggest market, Great Britain, continues to achieve considerable sales growth with 131,608 vehicles delivered to customers so far this year, an increase of 14.4%. Many other markets also achieved double-digit growth. Customer deliveries in France, for example, are up 20.9% (48,959). Many southern European markets are posting considerable growth in sales. Portugal is just one example - customer deliveries so far this year have increased 26.4% to total 9,423.

Sales in the Americas continue to achieve solid growth; a total of 321,375 BMW and MINI vehicles have been delivered to customers in the region so far this year, an increase of 7.4%. In the USA, sales in the first eight months of 2015 totalled 263,908, up 7.3%. Customer deliveries in Canada over the same period rose 11.8% (27,094) while sales in Mexico climbed 18.7% (11,013).

Deliveries of BMW and MINI vehicles in Asia in the year-to-date increased by 3.8% compared with the same period last year, totalling 440,908. For the first time ever, Mainland China achieved sales of over 300,000 in the first eight months of the year with deliveries up 0.9% to 301,529. Meanwhile the biggest growth drivers in the region remain Japan and South Korea. Deliveries in Japan climbed 11.3% in the year-to-date (42,920) while sales in South Korea saw even stronger growth of 20.7% (35,671).

Sales of BMW Motorrad motorcycles and maxi-scooters continue to show excellent momentum. A total of 8,737 units were sold in August, an increase of 15.2% compared with the same month last year. In the first eight months of the year, 101,323 customers took delivery of a BMW Motorrad vehicle, the first time the brand has sold over 100,000 units by this point in the year and up 12.3% on the same period last year.

BMW Group sales in/up to August 2015 at a glance 

	In August Compared with 2015 previous year		Up to/including Compared with August 2015 previous year
BMW Group
Automobiles	156,437	+7.2%	1,429,390	+7.4%
BMW	135,735	+7.6%	1,215,298	+5.5%
MINI	20,471	+5.0%	211,826	+20.6%
BMW Motorrad	8,737	+15.2%	101,323	+12.3%

The BMW Group 

With its three brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce, the BMW Group is the world's leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 30 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2014, the BMW Group sold approximately 2,118 million cars and 123,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax for the financial year 2014 was approximately € 8.71 billion on revenues amounting to € 80.40 billion. As of 31 December 2014, the BMW Group had a workforce of 116,324 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.

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SOURCE BMW Group

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