BMW Group sold 191, 269 BMW, mini and
Rolls-Royce cars in March - more than in any month in its history.
The
previous all-time high occurred last March when 185,741 cars were sold – a rise
of three per cent.
Retail
sales to the end of March also reached a new high. Sales increased 5.3 per cent
to 448,200, compared with 425,543 units previously.
Worldwide
sales of BMW brand vehicles reached a record 159,195 in March, a rise of four
per cent on the previous year. Sales to the end of March reached a record
381,404 cars compared with 356,562 previously – an increase of seven per cent.
Deliveries to
customers of Mini brand vehicles topped 31,763, compared with 32,422
previously, and 66,154 compared with 68,211 for the previous year’s first
quarter – a drop of three per cent. The company claims the drop could be
attributed to the four-week closure of the Mini plant in Oxford at the
beginning of the year for renovations.
Rolls-Royce
sales in the first quarter amounted to 642, a drop of 16.6 per cent on the
previous year as the manufacturing plant underwent ‘rebalancing’ and
preparations for the start of production of the new Rolls-Royce Wraith. March sales
reached 311, a rise of 2.6 per cent over the same period of last year,
underlining the company’s cautious optimism for another strong year in 2013. ∎
