BERLIN (Reuters) – BMW reported sales ahead of its main German rivals on Tuesday and was the only brand to significantly increase deliveries of battery-powered electric vehicles (EVs), even as Mercedes-Benz and Porsche struggled with weak demand.
BMW’s total sales rose 2.3% in the first half of the year to nearly 1.1 million vehicles, with sales of battery-powered EVs jumping 34% to a total of nearly 180,000 cars.
That’s almost double Mercedes’ EV sales, which are down 17% year-on-year to 93,400 vehicles, while total group sales fell 6% to 960,000 units.
Volkswagen’s premium brand Audi saw sales drop 8% in the first six months of the year to 833,000 vehicles, with EV sales up just 1.3%.
Automakers have cut prices of their EVs, particularly in China, in an attempt to revive sales amid slowing demand and increased competition.
Porsche and Mercedes-Benz, as well as Audi, said the launch of new models would help catch up and revive sales.
(Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Ilona Wissenbach and Rachel More; by Elena Smirnova; edited by Augustin Turpin)
Copyright © 2024 Thomson Reuters
I have over 8 years of experience working in the news industry. I have worked as a reporter, editor, and now managing editor at 247 News Agency. I am responsible for the day-to-day operations of the news website and overseeing all of the content that is published. I also write a column for the website, covering mostly market news.
