[imported_Katera]

I read today that GM might file bankruptcy...Ouch! I was just wondering how BMW was doing in this current economic downturn?

[1X3X3X3X5]

This website has a good article about BMW sales through June.

www.autospies.com/news/BMW-Sales-Tumble-17-Mini-Gains-An-Impressive-24-8-For-June-2008.

BMW Sales Tumble 17% - Mini Gains An Impressive 24.8% For June


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The BMW Group in the US (BMW and MINI combined) today reported June vehicle sales of 26,155, a decline of 11 percent from the 29,394 vehicles sold in the same month of 2007. For the first six months of 2008, BMW Group sales are down 3.9 percent to 157,913 vehicles versus the 164,338 sold in the first half of 2007.

BMW Brand Sales

BMW brand sales declined 17 percent, to 20,944 vehicles compared to 25,220 vehicles sold in June 2007. Year-to-date, BMW reported sales of 131,513 vehicles compared to the 144,579 reported in the same period a year ago, a decline of 9 percent.

"Internet leads and consumer traffic in our dealerships remain good, showing a premium brand such as BMW has the ability to better weather these turbulent times,” said Jim O'Donnell, President of BMW of North America, LLC. “Even in this segment however, we see a desire for increased efficiency and that is providing a natural impetus for strong sales of our new 1 Series and the 3 Series 328i models, but also for other vehicles such as the new X6 where consumers see the combination of efficiency, performance and luxury that's right for their unique needs. Within this overall environment, we are determined to remain profitable and help our corporation. We will do this by exercising disciplined volume management matched to demand, and make a small number of vehicles available to other markets where exchange rates are more beneficial for the company."

BMW Automobile Sales

BMW’s automobile sales are down 17.5 percent in June to 16,555 versus 20,068 in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date sales are down 8.7 percent, to 103,522 automobiles compared to 113,396 in the first half of 2007.

BMW Sports Activity Vehicles

Sales of BMW Sports Activity Vehicles are down 14.8 percent in June to 4,389 vehicles over the 5,152 sold last June. Year-to-date, sales of BMW Sports Activity Vehicles decreased by 10.2 percent, to 27,991 vehicles compared to the 31,184 sold in the same period of 2007.

MINI Brand Sales

MINI USA reported sales of 5,211 cars, a 24.8 percent increase compared to 4,174 cars sold in the same period a year ago. Year-to date, MINI USA also reported sales of 26,400 cars, an increase of 33.6 percent over the 19,759 vehicles sold in the same period a year ago.

"The last three months have been the best in our history as the significant structural shift to small cars has brought into our dealerships a diverse range of vehicle owners that currently drive large cars, SUVs and trucks. Our retailers tell us these people recognize the combination of efficiency, great dynamics and premium values MINI provides and it allows them to downsize their vehicle without downsizing their aspirations," said Jim McDowell, Vice-President MINI USA. “With very few cars remaining in inventory, our dealers are focusing on taking orders for custom-built cars that will be delivered to MINI drivers in July through September

BMW Certified Pre-Owned

BMW Certified Pre-Owned reported 7,909 CPO vehicles sold in June 2008 versus 7,540 vehicles reported last June, an increase of 4.9 percent. Year-to-date, CPO sales are up 22.7 percent, to 51,986 over the 42,384 reported in the same period in 2007.

[imported_Katera]

Well there is my answer. 17% is not that bad considering how bad GM and Ford have tumbled. I don't see BMW filing for bankruptcy anytime soon!

[xtrema]

Originally Posted by Katera

Well there is my answer. 17% is not that bad considering how bad GM and Ford have tumbled. I don't see BMW filing for bankruptcy anytime soon!

But, there'll be lean years ahead for BMW and most luxury car makers.

Remember, most of BMW's growth for the last few years are people cashing in on equities in their home. That's all gone now.

People are having less money to spend and more and more have to give up cars for food and shelter. People who buys 5,6,7 series will always be there but 3 and 1 buyers may have to downgrade to something cheaper and more fuel efficient which BMW doesn't offer in US or Canada.

Unlike the big 3, I doubt BMW will be going away. Big 3's downfall is instead keep taking the fight to the Japanese cars, they just retreat to SUVs and trucks which quickly go out of style when gas price goes up.

[ky_soldier]

i think you might see bmw offering some of the cheaper euro options like cloth seats, smaller engines, etc, in future 1/3 series, as well as a major migration to turbocharging vs larger normally aspirated engines for the M series, as M5 sales have tanked lately. also i see more m sales moving overseas where they can be sold at better exchange rates. inflation will increase US prices steadily as the dollar weakens

[jbenington86]

i love how they say minis have jumped 24.8% in sales...when total numbers of minis sold YTD is slightly more than number of 5 series sold YTD...with small numbers its very easy to make big jumps or big loss in %

[atr_hugo]

There's going to be some more consolidation - and Ford has put Volvo on the block (the last rumor was the Chinese were interested). BMW & Volvo would make a pretty strong, stable, company and Volvo is respected for it's safety engineering and meets BMW's 'premium' brand requirements. There was a talk not long ago that BMW felt that you had to be a 2 million per anum manufacturer to fend off a takeover bid.

I don't have any of the recent annual reports for BMW readily at hand. It would be interesting to see what their cash reserves were.

[Spook]

I agree that all car makers will suffer for awhile but I do think BMW is in a slightly better position. GM and Ford were highly reliant on SUV's and pickups for their profitability. Those categories appear to be dead for awhile (look at the X3 drop.. 31.5%). BMW has a stronger stake in the car market so I think they will fare better. Also, mini is booming and will keep their bottom line in better shape.

Thanks to 1X3X3 (etc.) for the informative post.

[Brandon26pdx]

They're not immune to cooling economic trends by any stretch, but they're far from the hurt the US Big-3 are in.

[gargoyal]

BMW's real concern will be how they do compared to Lexus. they were gaining on Lexus in market share prior to the down turn. Toyota is the gateway to Lexus and Toyota’s market share is climbing.

[mikeo]

Interesting to note that a total of all 1-Series model sales through June is 6101. With only July and maybe August left for 2008 MY production it looks like the total for the year will be under 10000.

[Jack in Jax]

The quarterly sales report cited above, aside from being a single snapshot in time, doesn't answer the question. BMW's international sales (e.g. U.S. sales are trending down but China/Russia sales are accelerating), its product mix (since profit varies by model & options), the efficiency of its operations (e.g. BMW is currently downsizing its domestic workforce), how it manages its sales program (e.g. U.S. dealer profits were recently reduced to constrain MSRP pricing), and how it manages its finances (e.g. its loan portfolio, level of declared dividends) are all examples of why BMW's financial health is a complex subject.

For those not interested in reading financial analysts' reports, a simple option is to read the industry reports in each month's CCA Roundel.

Jack

[lib]

Originally Posted by mikeo

Interesting to note that a total of all 1-Series model sales through June is 6101. With only July and maybe August left for 2008 MY production it looks like the total for the year will be under 10000.

My guess is the only way they could have sold every single car by the end of August is if every allocation was shipped to the east coast as a custom order with a wait list to cover customers that back out.

Dealers will order a few with poor option choices and colors. Some inventory will still be in transit to Hawaii and the west coast. A few orders will be canceled at the last minute. Given the proper lag time I expect very few '08s to be sitting around on lots but there will always be a few.

[rocketpop]

I wouldn't worry to much about BMW just because US automakers are doing bad. I mean thier big money use to be trucks and SUV and not the US market it shifting to better fuel econo cars.

BMW will still sale plenty of cars world wide even if thier US sales drop.