Abu Dhabi drives record sales for BMW

The BMW i8. BMW sales have increased in the Middle East. Courtesy BMW

Sales of BMW cars in Abu Dhabi underpinned the marque’s record results last year across the Middle East.

The capital was the biggest individual importer of BMWs, with a 68 per cent increase contributing to a 40 per cent increase in total UAE sales.

The German car maker last year sold 30,148 automobiles in the region, a 23 per cent increase on 2013.

Dubai posted a 15 per cent uptick in sales, with most GCC markets recording double digit growth, which BMW attributed to investment by its local partnerships.

The company provided percentage changes but not total numbers for sales at the city and country level.

The region’s bestseller was the BMW 5 series, posting a 5 per cent growth with 5,915 cars sold. The X model proved a regional favourite, accounting for 41 per cent of the total sales, while the BMW X5 alone sold more than 5,797, an increase of 60 per cent.

The BMW 7 Series model was the third best-selling BMW model capturing 14 per cent of its sales making the Middle East the third biggest BMW 7 Series market in the world after China and the United States.

Johannes Seibert, the managing director for BMW Group Middle East, credited “strong successful partnerships” with local importers.

“They continue to invest in our brands and introduce new and unique services to the market. To put this in perspective, they have collectively invested more than $300 million over the past five years in their facilities and innovative new customer services,” he said.

Mercedes, BMW’s main rival in the premium automotive space, is due to release its results next week. The company is likely to post impressive regional figures as its global sales in the 11 months through November were already up 12 per cent over the full-year sales of 2013.

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