BMW said on Tuesday that fourth-quarter group sales increased 10.6%, helped by fewer supply chain bottlenecks in a year marred by war in Ukraine and Chinese lockdowns.
Full-year deliveries fell 4.8%, with Europe and China being the hardest hit by supply chain issues that slowed output, particularly in the first half of the year.
However, sales increased in the fourth quarter as the company restructured its supply chains in Europe and lifted lockdowns in China. In Europe and China, sales increased 10.9% and 12.7%, respectively, year on year.
Deliveries in the United States were more stable, falling by only 1.3% year on year, with a boost from 11.1% growth in the fourth quarter.
Fully electric vehicle sales performed well as well, more than doubling to 215,755 over the year.
"We are confident we can build on this success in 2023, as we continue to see particularly high order intake for our fully electric models," said Pieter Nota, management board member responsible for customer, brands and sales.
BMW fared better than competitors in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, achieving record sales in 2021. Though 2022 was more problematic, higher prices have so far compensated for the drop in sales volumes.
According to Tuesday's trading update, the carmaker now intends to transition to a direct sales model in 24 European markets, with agents acting as sales representatives.
The goal is to reach out to "new, online-savvy customer target groups," according to the company.
The company's Mini car brand will be sold through this business model beginning in 2024, with the BMW brand following in 2026, according to the company.
(Source:www.reuters.com)
Full-year deliveries fell 4.8%, with Europe and China being the hardest hit by supply chain issues that slowed output, particularly in the first half of the year.
However, sales increased in the fourth quarter as the company restructured its supply chains in Europe and lifted lockdowns in China. In Europe and China, sales increased 10.9% and 12.7%, respectively, year on year.
Deliveries in the United States were more stable, falling by only 1.3% year on year, with a boost from 11.1% growth in the fourth quarter.
Fully electric vehicle sales performed well as well, more than doubling to 215,755 over the year.
"We are confident we can build on this success in 2023, as we continue to see particularly high order intake for our fully electric models," said Pieter Nota, management board member responsible for customer, brands and sales.
BMW fared better than competitors in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, achieving record sales in 2021. Though 2022 was more problematic, higher prices have so far compensated for the drop in sales volumes.
According to Tuesday's trading update, the carmaker now intends to transition to a direct sales model in 24 European markets, with agents acting as sales representatives.
The goal is to reach out to "new, online-savvy customer target groups," according to the company.
The company's Mini car brand will be sold through this business model beginning in 2024, with the BMW brand following in 2026, according to the company.
(Source:www.reuters.com)