BMW holds off rivals Mercedes-Benz and Audi in bestselling luxury car race

BMW reported a 10 per cent rise in vehicle deliveries across Middle East, ahead of Audi and Mercedes.

Visitors take a photo of the new i8 of BMW on display at the Dubai International Motor Show. Ali Haider / EPA

The race for the title of world’s bestselling luxury car maker has been a tighter affair this year, but in the Middle East BMW has maintained its lead against fiercest rivals Audi and Mercedes-Benz, the latest sales data show.

In the first six months of this year, BMW delivered 886,347 vehicles globally — up 10 per cent — with VW-owned Audi trailing by just 16,997 vehicles compared to 23,760 a year earlier. The gap to Mercedes-Benz in third shrank 6 per cent to 102,827 cars.

Globally, demand for premium models, especially in the US and China, is driving growth for all three car makers and record deliveries are expected for the full year.

While all three manufacturers posted record deliveries in the Middle East, BMW’s 25 per cent jump showed the greatest increase.

A total of 15,797 BMW and Mini vehicles were delivered to customers in 12 Middle East markets with the UAE accounting for about 50 per cent of sales. Audi reported an 11 per cent rise in regional sales compared to last year, while Mercedes delivered 3,300 vehicles in Dubai and the Northern Emirates alone, a 22 per cent increase year on year.

According to Johannes Seibert, the managing director, BMW Group Middle East, the region’s “premium automotive market is growing approximately 15 per cent a year”.

For BMW, 2014 has been the best-ever half-year performance thanks mainly to demand for top-end models.

“The flagship BMW 7 Series as well as our higher-end BMW X models continue to be drivers of growth here in the capital,” said Arno Husselmann, the general manager of Abu Dhabi Motors.

Abu Dhabi’s BMW sales jumped 57 per cent across the range.

Audi Middle East reported sales of 5,689 vehicles in the first half of this year, delivering 42 per cent of those cars, or 2,390 vehicles, into the UAE.

“For three years in a row now, Audi Middle East reported a double digit growth,” said Luca de Meo, a member of the board of management for sales at Audi. “The successful A3 family and the full-size segment in particular helped accelerate our global growth in the first six months. We’re also optimistic for the upcoming months and will carry forward the momentum from the first half of the year.”

In Dubai and the Northern Emirates, Mercedes posted record gains with plans to expand its commercial vehicles division.

“During the first half of the year, we have delivered almost 3,300 units in total across the range of new passenger cars reflecting a 22 per cent increase over same time last year,” said Wassim Derbi, marketing manager for Gargash Enterprises. “At the moment we have no expansion plans with regards to passenger cars, but we will be expanding in terms of commercial vehicles. We will soon be launching the commercial vehicles service centre in Thouban, Fujairah.”

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