BERLIN, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Global sales of BMW and MINI cars in the third quarter (Q3) of 2023 rose by 5.8 percent year-on-year to 621,699 units, the BMW Group said on Tuesday. Growth was driven by strong demand in the German home market for battery electric vehicles (BEVs).
Soaring by almost 80 percent, BEV sales in Q3 reached 93,931 units. The share of BEVs in total sales increased to 15 percent, hitting BMW's group target for the full year 2023.
"Overall, we are on track to meet our growth targets for 2023," BMW AG Board member Pieter Nota said in a statement, confirming the recently raised expectation of "solid" instead of only "slight growth" in sales for the year.
In China, the company's largest single market, more BMW and MINI cars were sold in the year to date despite a decline in the third quarter. From January to September, sales there rose by 1.7 percent year-on-year to 602,911 vehicles, with BEV sales more than tripling, according to the company.
"China, of course, remains significant as a key core market alongside the U.S. and Europe," a BMW spokesperson told Xinhua on Tuesday. "We are looking to the future with confidence."
The BMW Group's revenue in the first half of the year rose by 12.4 percent to 74.1 billion euros (78.6 billion U.S. dollars), according to the company. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) were even up 42.6 percent to 9.7 billion euros. (1 euro = 1.06 U.S. dollars) ■