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BMW Group retail grows 13.1% in first half year

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– Double-digit growth at BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce again in June
– Rolls-Royce sells more cars than ever before
– Positive sales trend continues in Motorcycles segment
The BMW Group has ended the first half-year with substantial growth in sales. A total of 696,026 (prev. yr. 615,454) BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brand automobiles were delivered to customers worldwide in the first six months of the year – an increase of 13.1%. In June, sales volumes rose 12.2% to 143,157 (prev. yr. 127.556) vehicles. The company made gains in virtually all markets during the first half-year, with sales in China, the American and European markets in particular reporting the strongest growth. On the product side, the BMW X1, 5 Series GT and Z4 models, together with the BMW 7 Series, were among the main growth drivers in the first half of the year. The new BMW 5 Series Sedan also got off to a strong start – roughly 25,000 models have already been sold since its European launch in mid-March.
Ian Robertson, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for Sales and Marketing: “In some cases, the automobile markets are recovering much faster than expected. We had a successful first half-year with retail growth of 13.1%, and were able to maintain our position as the world-s leading premium manufacturer.” Robertson added: “We aim to continue this upward trend in the second half of the year. Besides the new BMW 5 Series Sedan, a large number of new models, including the new BMW 5 Series Touring, the new BMW X3 and the MINI Countryman, will help us achieve this.”
The company reported sales growth in almost all regions and all automobile markets in the first half of the year. In Europe, deliveries increased 3.9% to reach a total of 389,601 (prev. yr. 374,923) units. Most of this increase came from high-volume markets such as the UK (73,000 / +20.4%), France (34,235 / +11.6%), Spain (23,426 / +35.9%) and Belgium/Luxemburg (20,474 / +16.5%).
In a sharply declining overall market (-28.7%), the company was able to maintain new vehicle registrations very close to last year-s level in its largest sales market of Germany, at a total of 135,421 (prev. yr. 136,769 / -1.0%) BMW and MINI sales, and expand its market share significantly to 9.2%. However, the BMW brand was the only premium brand in Germany to make gains in the first six months. With a total of 120,262 (prev. yr. 118,960) vehicles sold here, 1.1% more new BMW automobiles were registered than in the same period last year.
The company also remained on its growth track in its strongest export market: In the US, 121,585 (prev. yr. 114,448) BMW and MINI vehicles – 6.2 percent more units – were delivered to customers. The BMW Group therefore remains the best-selling European premium carmaker in the US market. With 23,331 (prev. yr. 20,849) BMW and MINI deliveries and growth of 11.9%, June was also the strongest month so far this year in the US.
In Asia, BMW Group volumes climbed 57.5% between January and June (128,483 / prev. yr. 81,586). The Chinese market continued to see exceptionally dynamic growth. With sales of 75,615 vehicles in the first half of the year (prev. yr. 37,627 / +101.0%), the company more than doubled its retail volume here from the same period last year. The BMW Group also reported strong gains in the other “BRIC” countries, Brazil (+131.4%), Russia (+24.5%) and India (+25.0%), as well as in the markets of Africa (+26.8%) and Oceania (+13.8%).
BMW brand sales rose 14.1% to 585,755 automobiles (prev. yr. 513,591) in the period under review. In June, the brand delivered 119,663 (prev. yr. 105,232) vehicles to customers worldwide – an increase of 13.7%. Growth drivers in the first half-year were mainly the BMW X1, with 46,705 units, and the BMW 5 Series GT, with 11,803 units. Strong gains were also made by large model series, such as the BMW 7 Series with 30,711 deliveries (+50.0% / prev. yr. 20,479) and the BMW X5 and X6 models with a combined total of 68,632 (+7.1% / prev. yr. 64,078) deliveries. The strongest growth in the first half of the year was reported by the BMW Z4 Roadster with 14,236 (+74.7% / prev. yr. 8,148) vehicles sold. The BMW 7 Series, the BMW X5/X6 and the BMW Z4 remain the global market leaders in their respective segments. Volumes also increased for what is traditionally BMW-s highest-volume series: Overall, the 3 Series made gains of 3.0%, with 199,027 (prev. yr. 193,186) deliveries in the period between January and June. Robertson: “This year-s most important new model is the new BMW 5 Series. The new BMW 5 Series Sedan, launched in March, has already found 25,000 customers. In June, we also introduced this model in the US – and the car has also been extremely well received here.”
In the first half of the year, sales of MINI brand automobiles were 7.6% higher than the same period last year at 109,301 (prev. yr. 101,534) units. In June, the brand sold 23,202 (prev. yr. 22,271 / +4.2%) units worldwide. Robertson: “With the addition of the new MINI Countryman in the autumn, the MINI family will expand to include four versions. Together with extensive updates to the existing model range, the first MINI crossover model will provide a strong impetus for growth in the second half of the year.” From mid-September onwards, the current MINI models (MINI, MINI Clubman and MINI Convertible) will also receive striking design modifications, additional engine variants, a completely revised selection of diesel engines and innovative new equipment options.
Rolls-Royce has never sold as many cars in a half-year period as this year since the company launched in 2003. With 970 (prev. yr. 329) deliveries so far, growth in the first six months surged 194.8%. Robertson: “Compared with June 2009, Rolls-Royce sales more than quintupled last month to 292 (prev. yr. 53) deliveries. With this monthly and half-year result, we are well on our way to meeting our full-year target of more than doubling Rolls-Royce-s total sales.”
In the first half-year of 2010, BMW Motorrad sold 57,015 (prev. yr. 46,972) vehicles. This represents a retail growth of 21.4 % from the first half of 2009. The positive global trend for BMW Motorrad continued in June. Despite the negative trend on the global motorcycle markets, BMW Motorrad was able to sell more motorcycles year-on-year for the sixth consecutive month. In June, a total of 11,584 (prev. yr. 9,402 / +23.2%) vehicles were delivered to customers. The bestseller list was topped by the large long-distance enduro, the R 1200 GS, which is the world-s best-selling motorcycle in the segment for large capacity bikes in the 500 cc plus class. In the year to the end of June, no less than 6,459 (in June 1,223) units of the S 1000 RR, BMW Motorrad-s first supersport motorcycle, were delivered to customers worldwide – earning it second place in the supersport segment among the 1000 cc class sport bikes.
At a technology day to present BMW-s first in-line six-cylinder motorcycle engine in early July, the business unit provided a first glimpse of its next product offensive. In the future, the engine will power two luxurious new BMW touring bikes, the K 1600 GT and the K 1600 GTL, which will be presented to the public in autumn 2010. Both models will be distinguished by their innovative technology, superior engine smoothness and state-of-the-art fuel consumption.

The BMW Group is one of the most successful manufacturers of automobiles and motorcycles in the world with its BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 24 production facilities in 13 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.
The BMW Group achieved a global sales volume of approximately 1.29 million automobiles and over 87,000 motorcycles for the 2009 financial year. The pretax profit for 2009 was euro 413 million, revenues totalled euro 50.68 billion. At 31 December 2009, the company employed a global workforce of approximately 96,000 associates.
The success of the BMW Group has always been built on longterm 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. As a result of its efforts, the BMW Group has been ranked industry leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes for the last five years.