BMW Group Sales Numbers Are Better Than They Were Ever Before the Pandemic
For many individuals and businesses, 2020 was a year of challenges. The economy took a hit during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In response, several automakers have taken the lead in innovation, as many turn toward electric or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Sales have started to rebound in 2021 as the economy starts to level out.
BMW has posted some of their highest sales numbers in some time recently. It seems that people are back to car shopping after a year spent at home.
BMW had good sales in 2019
The BMW Group had a good year in 2019 before the pandemic. Their sales were up 7.1% from the previous year, which is a good but still modest gain. The company expected to see more growth in 2020, but that was not accounting for a pandemic. While they did have slow sales in 2020, it was better than anyone at BMW Group expected.
BMW was only down by 2%. The last quarter of 2020 posted some good numbers for them, and their light truck sales were up. Business Wire says that those fourth-quarter sales were up 9.6%.
The company managed to hold its own in a very challenging year. The fourth-quarter sales for 2020 were only a precursor to the first six months of 2021.
BMW posts sales for the first half of 2021
BMW’s sales for the first quarter of 2021 were better than their pre-pandemic sales. 2019 was a good year for BMW, but 2021 is proving to be even better. According to the BMW Group, they have sold over 1.3 million vehicles. This is all of BMW group, which includes BMW, Rolls-Royce, and MINI.
That is a 39% gain over the previous year and is an all-time high in sales for the group. They are coming back strong from an economy that struggled through a pandemic.
BMW Group also had record-high sales of electric and hybrid vehicles, up over 148% from the last year. Consumers are starting to turn toward electric cars, and the line-up profited from the evolving economy. Their fully electric sales, excluding the plug-in hybrid, were up 183%.
The forefront of innovation
On the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for customer brands and sales, Pieter Nota spoke about the shift to electric vehicles and the company’s response. He says they will continue to produce fully electric vehicles and innovate in that arena. The upcoming BMW iX and i4 are fully electric vehicles that he says will represent a new era in electric mobility.
BMW also plans to release new fully electric vehicles and raise their sales of electric vehicles by 50% per year. They are looking to the future, and by 2030, they expect half of their total sales will be electric vehicles. This would be around 10 million vehicles.
According to Reuters, BMW is also looking into hydrogen-powered vehicles. They plan to introduce a zero-emissions SUV in 2022. The company is committed to a fleet of vehicles that will be emissions-free very soon.
As the economy begins to recover, look for other automakers to start posting good sales, especially those investing in electric and alternative-powered vehicles. Auto manufacturers who are paving the way in new technology and providing consumers with new and exciting ways to drive are the ones that will lead the way forward. BMW Group is one of those automakers, and it seems that their goal to produce 10 million electric vehicles in the next decade might be in reach.
