BMW Ups the Ante on 2010 Target

Following the promising results reported for the first half of the year, German manufacturer BMW announced it will be increasing its 2010 sales and revenue target accordingly. For the full 2010, BMW plans to sell 1.4 million units, an increase of 10 percent compared to last year. Full-year EBIT margin is expected to be over 5 percent, while the Financial Services segment plans to achieve a growth of 18 percent.

“Improved business conditions on the international automobile markets mean that the BMW Group now expects to report much better second-quarter and full-year earnings than previously forecast,” BMW said in a statement.

The carmaker warns however that, given the “numerous economic risks,” the new estimates will only be achievable if the “economic recovery continues and that general business conditions are not significantly dampened.“

For the first half of the year, BMW sold 696,026 BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce vehicles. For the main brand, the 585,755 sold vehicles represented a 14.1 percent increase in sales. The main market for BMW remained Asia, with its 57.5 increase in sales driving the good results. China was in the front line of the best selling countries.

“We aim to continue this upward trend in the second half of the year. Besides the new BMW 5 Series Sedan, a large number of new models, including the new BMW 5 Series Touring, the new BMW X3 and the MINI Countryman, will help us achieve this,“ Ian Robertson, BMW member of the board said in a statement when the results for the first half were announced.