May 2019: BMW Group sales increased 3.2 percent

May was a positive month for BMW Group sales, with worldwide deliveries increasing by 3.2% to achieve a total of 210,563 premium BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce vehicles sold. This brings the company’s total sales for the year-to-date to 1,012,093, an increase of 0.8% compared with the first five months of last year. This sales growth was achieved despite ongoing volatility in several markets around the world.

“With this positive result, we are clearly seeing the impact of our model rollout. In May, we were once again able to grow sales above market, thereby gaining further market share,” said Pieter Nota, member of the BMW AG Board of Management responsible for Customer, Brands and Sales. “Especially pleasing is the development of our new X models, as their overall sales increased by over 30% in the month. Similarly, i3 sales continue to grow, bucking the usual cycle, and were up 40% in the month. This helped us reach an important milestone in May, as we delivered our 400,000^th electrified vehicle since the i3 was launched in November 2013,” Nota continued.

Overall sales of BMW brand vehicles grew by 4.6% in May, with a total of 181,888 delivered to customers worldwide in the month. That result brings the brand’s sales total for the first five months of the year to 872,367 / +1.6%. The new or revised BMW X vehicles were the brand’s biggest growth drivers, with global sales of the BMW X2 up 33.1% in May, while sales of the BMW X3 rose by 88,4%. Deliveries of the BMW X4 jumped by 92.5% and the BMW X5 achieved a sales increase of 10.2%. In total, BMW X vehicles accounted for 45.3% of the brand’s overall sales in May with 82,425 delivered around the world, an increase of 30.3% on the same month last year.

In May, cumulated BMW Group electrified sales topped the 400,000 mark with a total of 406,756 fully-electric and plug-in hybrid models delivered to customers since the pioneering BMW i3 first went on sale in November 2013. Five and a half years after it was launched, demand for the iconic BMW i3 continues to grow with global sales in May up 40.0%. Overall sales of BMW Group electrified vehicles grew by 9.8% in May, as customers show increasing interest in low emissions mobility. Deliveries of the plug-in hybrid BMW 2 Series Active Tourer* quadrupled in May and sales of the electrified BMW 5 Series* increased by 40.4%. Sales of the plug-in hybrid MINI Cooper S E Countryman ALL4* in May were almost three times as high as the same month last year. By the end of next year, the BMW Group will have introduced ten new or updated electrified models and by the end of this year, the company expects to have a total of half a million electrified vehicles on the roads.

In an extremely competitive segment, and with the company maintaining its focus on profitability, MINI brand sales decreased compared with last year. Deliveries in the year to date totalled 137,698 (-4.0%) while sales in May decreased by 5.1% to 28,255. Availability of MINI models was lower than usual in May, due to the scheduled four-week break in production at Plant Oxford taking place this year in April, rather than during the summer. Preparations continue for the launch of the all-new fully-electric MINI later this year, a model which will be built at the UK plant.

BMW Motorrad sales continue to grow strongly, with year-to-date deliveries up 7.1% (74,958). In May, a total of 17,944 (+5.2%) premium BMW Motorrad motorcycles and maxi scooters were delivered to customers around the world.

Sales in the regions/markets

Despite the various headwinds currently affecting the automotive industry, BMW achieved increased sales in all three of its biggest markets in May. Significant sales growth was achieved in China and Germany, increasing market share in the brand’s home market, while BMW continued to buck the trend in the USA by once again achieving a sales increase in the month. Despite the ongoing competitive and volatile global market environment, the BMW Group expects to achieve an increase in sales in 2019. The company continues to follow its strategy of prioritising profitability before volume.

BMW & MINI Sales at a glance

*Provisional registration figures

BMW Group sales in/ytd May 2019 at a glance

*BMW i, BMW iPerformance, MINI Electric