The first half of the year presented a mixed picture for BMW Group: while markets in China and the Asia-Pacific region saw significant declines in the first six months (more than 20% in China), the BMW Group increased its sales in Europe and the U.S.
In Europe, sales rose by around +5.4%. In the US, the company recorded +3.9% growth, with the BMW brand outperforming the overall market. In the first half of 2026, the BMW Group delivered a total of around 1.15 million vehicles to customers worldwide, representing a decline in sales of -4.2%
“Despite challenges worldwide, we achieved positive sales results in the U.S. and Europe,” said Jochen Goller, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Customer, Brands, Sales.
“The Neue Klasse continues to show strong momentum. With the BMW iX3, we are on track to reach the next major milestone of 100,000 new orders. The second ‘Neue Klasse model’, the BMW i3, is already seeing strong demand since orders opened ahead of its launch,” he added.
EV trend very positive in Europe
BMW Group reports that its brands sold 204,295 battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) in the first half of the year, marking a 7.4% decline compared with the first half of 2025. However, the two quarters showed significant differences. While the period from January to March (Q1) saw sharp losses, BMW recorded a 5.2% increase in sales between April and June (Q2), delivering 116,807 BEVs.
The carmaker thus attributes the rebound in electric vehicle sales in the second quarter to the launch of the new BMW iX3. The Munich-based company noted in a statement that this was evident in the European market, where the BMW iX3 was first available, and BEV sales surged to 81,445 units (+38.0%). In Germany, BMW climbed to second place in fully electric vehicle registrations in Q2.
It remains unclear how significant the decline in the Chinese electric vehicle market was or how BEV sales developed in North America. However, the fact that 81,445 of the 116,807 BEV sales in the second quarter were in Europe indicates that BMW sold only 35,362 BEVs across all other regions combined. The 38% growth in Europe must be offset by substantial losses elsewhere; otherwise, the overall dynamics in this segment would not have turned negative.
BMW also reports global sales of electrified vehicles, combining BEVs and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). The carmaker delivered 295,407 units from January to June (-7.4% year-on-year), with 162,870 units sold in the second quarter (+0.8% year-on-year). Excluding BEVs, 91,112 PHEVs were delivered in the first half of the year, and 46,063 in Q2.
Calculations further reveal that 17.6% of all BMW passenger car sales in the first six months of the year were fully electric. Including PHEVs, 25.5% of all new BMWs featured a plug, meaning every fourth vehicle. These shares are significantly higher than those of other German carmakers.
Global sales lower, except for Mini
The BMW brand delivered around one million vehicles to customers in the first half of the year (-6.2%). The BMW brand recorded growth in both Europe (+1.5%) and the U.S.(+4.7%). In the USA, growth was primarily driven by the BMW X models. The new BMW X5 was also unveiled there in late June, with its market launch expected to generate positive sales momentum worldwide. During the same period, BMW M GmbH delivered 99,595 vehicles to customers (-6.0%).
With a total of 149,538 vehicles sold, the Mini brand posted a significant year-on-year increase of +11.7%, marking its sixth consecutive quarter of growth. Mini’s fully electric models experienced strong global demand and were the brand’s primary growth driver. The Rolls-Royce brand handed over 2,523 vehicles to customers in the first half of 2026 (-9.8%). In the first six months of the year, BMW Motorrad delivered a total of 102,847 motorcycles and scooters (-2.9%).
Worry child China
The primary reason for the general 4.2% sales decline is that the group’s brands saw a 20.4% drop in China in the first half of the year, falling to 261,773 vehicles. That still represents more than half of European sales (496,651 in H1) and is slightly more than American sales (244,199).In the second quarter, sales even declined by 30.2% in China.
Gains in other regions were insufficient to offset these losses. Sales in Europe rose by approximately 5.4% (+7.6% in Q2), while in the USA they increased by 3.9% (+11.9% in Q2).
Also, in what BMW calls the ‘Fourth Pillar sales region (Asia-Pacific without China, Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa), sales results were not so good. For the first half-year of 2026, sales declined by 9.6%, the result for Q2 was -10.8%.
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