Dubai: The UAE accounted for just under half of the 21,314 units the BMW Group delivered to owners in the region last year, with Abu Dhabi taking the mantle of the highest selling volume market. Apart from the BMW badged models, the total also includes those of the Mini which has benefitted from a slew of new launches.
There was increased numbers coming in from all of the major regional markets, with the final tally representing a robust 14 per cent growth over 2011. That year, BMW Group sold 18,657 vehicles.
“It is the first time that we have crossed the 20,000 unit mark,” said
Dr. Joerg Breuer, managing director, BMW Group M.E. “These results clearly demonstrate the continued growth of the region’s economies, with the BMW Group making gains in almost all GCC and Levant markets, and with almost all our importers recording double digit growth.”
Of the individual line-ups, the 5 Series made up 22 per cent of the volumes with 5,210 units sold and followed by the flagship 7 Series with 4,145 units. The latter was aided in no small measure by the launch of the latest version in September.
Mini’s demand came to 1,305 models sold across the nine Middle East markets, which is an 18 per cent increase over 2011. This made for the most successful year in the brand’s history. Sales were led by the Countryman – the first Mini with four doors and four-wheel drive capability – and making up 41 per cent of the regional sales.
The new coupé and roadster also pulled their weight with 20 per cent of the unit sales.
