BMW sees record August sales, on course for full year growth

BMW Group reported its highest ever sales in August with a total of 139,648 vehicles delivered worldwide, up 14.8% over the same month last year. Worldwide sales year-to-date also reached an all-time high with 1,246,528 vehicles sold, an increase of 7.7% over the same period in 2012.
"For the very first time, we sold over one million BMW brand vehicles in the first eight months of the year. The company is well on course to attain growth in sales for the full year. Today we presented new models such as the 4 Series Coupe and the third generation X5, which will provide for additional momentum towards the end of the year," Ian Robertson, BMW AG board member, said at the 65th International Motor Show in Frankfurt.
Worldwide BMW sales in August climbed 15.6% to 118,743 units. Sales of the 3 Series surged 38.6% to 34,943; demand for the X3 remained high, with sales increasing 7.3% to 10,532; and, the 5 Series continued its success story with 28,364 units sold last month. Upper segment vehicles also performed well with 1,976 BMW 6 Series vehicles sold (+13.1%) and the flagship 7 Series delivered to 4,764 customers (+25.8%). A total of 1,051,595 BMWs were delivered to customers worldwide since the start of the year, an increase of 9.2%.
MINI also reported its best August figures with 20,653 deliveries worldwide (+10.6%). Sales of the Hatch climbed by 22.5% last month to 9,662 and Convertible deliveries increased by 8.2% to 1,548. The brand continued to record strong growth in China (2,460/ +31.1%) and South Korea (550/ +22.2%), while year-to-date worldwide sales are at around last year's level with 192,966 vehicles (prev. yr. 192,651/ +0.2%).
Demand for BMW Group vehicles was particularly high in Asia and the Americas, where the company achieved double-digit growth in the month under review.
In Asia, the company delivered 48,620 vehicles, an increase of 27.9% compared to August last year. China accounted for 34,166 deliveries, up 34.6% on the previous year (25,377). Sales in South Korea climbed 37.7% to 3,810. Year to date, the BMW Group sold 367,441 vehicles in Asia (+17.7%), including 249,160 in China (+20.1%).
The company posted strong gains in the Americas last month with a total of 37,672 vehicles sold, an increase of 29.3% on the previous year. In the U.S., a total of 30,546 BMWs and MINIs were delivered, an increase of 35.4% on August last year (22,553). From January to August, the BMW Group sold 288,189 vehicles in the Americas (+12.2%), including 233,326 units in the U.S. (+12.0%).
In Europe, sales were slightly lower than August last year, with 48,218 vehicles delivered (prev. yr. 49,354/ -2.3%). The company reported a total of 20,241 registrations in Germany, up 12.8% compared to the previous year, where the main growth driver was the 3 Series. Year to date, sales have remained stable in Europe with a total of 548,148 vehicles delivered (+0.1%). In Germany, 180,262 BMW Group vehicles were registered from January to August (prev. yr. 185,849/ -3.0%).
BMW Motorrad achieved an all-time high for August with sales climbing 4.2% to 7,708 motorcycle delivered (prev. yr. 7,400). Year-to-date, Motorrad sold 83,890 units, an increase of 9.3% on the same period in the previous year (76,729).