By Nina Kienle and Dominic Chopping
BMW group vehicle sales fell in the first quarter as deliveries to the U.S. and China continued to drop.
The German automaker, which houses its namesake brand as well as the Mini and Rolls-Royce marques and a motorcycle business, said overall sales fell 3.5% in the quarter to 565,748 vehicles.
European automakers have been grappling with intense competition and a struggling economy in China at the same time as U.S. tariffs have added costs across the industry.
Sales of BMW and Mini branded cars rose 3% in Europe, but fell 4.3% in the U.S. and by 10% in China. However, the company said its sales in China outperformed the overall market decline in the country.
The news comes after German rivals Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen both recently reported lower sales in China.
BMW said Tuesday that demand for models with internal combustion engines remained slightly above the level seen last year, while customer interest in the first model from its new range of Neue Klasse vehicles remains strong.
The Neue Klasse platform is the new base for BMW's future generation of software-first cars, tech-heavy cars with increased software capabilities. The first vehicle to launch on the platform is the BMW iX3 and the company has previously said it is operating two shifts at its plant in Debrecen, Hungary to keep up with demand.
"We are seeing exceptionally strong demand for the new BMW iX3," said sales chief Jochen Goller. "With well over 50,000 new orders since ordering opened in Europe, customer interest in the BMW iX3 is exceeding our high expectations."
BMW said orders for fully electric vehicles in Europe surged 40% in the quarter, driven by the strong interest in its iX3.
On a global basis, fully-electric group vehicle deliveries fell 20% though, with the end of government incentives in the U.S. dragging the market lower.
Looking forward, BMW said that despite an overall challenging market environment, it is confident that its product portfolio and the worldwide availability of Neue Klasse models will generate increasingly positive momentum.
Write to Nina Kienle at nina.kienle@wsj.com and Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04-14-26 0808ET
