bmw
Operations are also running smoothly: top models and electric cars are in particularly high demand.
(Photo: dpa)
Thanks to the full inclusion of the China business, the car manufacturer BMW achieved a significant increase in sales in the first quarter. The people of Munich once again benefited from the stable prices for new and used cars. Revenue increased by 18.3 percent to 36.9 billion euros, as the group announced on Thursday. Operations are also running smoothly: top models and electric cars are in particularly high demand. The shares gained 1.5 percent in pre-market trading at Lang & Schwarz.
The profit margin in the car business, which is important for the company, improved to 12.1 percent after 8.9 percent in the previous year and was thus above the company’s own target of eight to ten percent. Outgoing CFO Nicolas Peter said the margins were achieved amid persistently volatile conditions. “The geopolitical and macroeconomic situation remains tense.” Inflation rates and interest rates in important markets were at a high level, as were the costs of materials and raw materials.
Net profit, on the other hand, fell by 64 percent to 3.7 billion euros. It was noticeable that a one-time valuation effect due to the full consolidation of the China business from the previous year was no longer applicable. The Munich-based company is sticking to its forecast for the year as a whole. In Europe, a slight growth of the overall market can still be expected after the order backlog remained at a high level in the first quarter. “However, the high inflation and interest rate environment represent uncertainty factors that continue to weigh on European consumers,” it said.
In addition, the tailwind that car manufacturers had felt in prices due to the shortage of semiconductors should abate. BMW predicts a normalization of prices on the new and used car markets. “With more resilient supply chains, better availability of vehicles can be expected. This could lead to increasing competition,” it said. Because semiconductors were scarce during the corona pandemic, many car manufacturers had to reduce their production – as a result, the prices for new and used cars rose significantly.
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