BMW Closes September with a 5% Drop in Net Profit

BMW closed the first nine months of the year with a net profit of 5.523 billion euros, a 4.7% decrease compared to the same period in 2024, amidst competitive pressure and new tariffs impacting its profitability.

Despite this decline, the German group managed to improve its profits in the third quarter, reaching 1.674 billion euros, more than quadruple the amount from a year earlier, thanks to better operational performance following a previous year hampered by weakness in China and Europe.

Between January and September, the consortium, which includes the BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce brands, as well as BMW Motorrad (its motorcycles), saw revenues decrease by 5.6% to 99.9 billion euros. The automotive division contributed 87.2 billion (-4%), the financial division 29.7 billion (+3.9%), and the motorcycle division 2.5 billion (-1.6%).

The automotive business recorded an operating profit of 3.275 billion (-10%), while motorcycles increased by 13% to 191 million, and the financial division fell by 12.2% to 1.307 billion.

The automotive sector's profitability margin stood at 5.3% during the third quarter, at the lower end of the company's forecast range (between 5% and 6%). BMW attributed the pressure on its margins to "strong competition" in China and tariffs in both the United States and the European Union, which cut approximately 1.8 percentage points from profitability. Import duties affect, among other models, the Mini Cooper and Aceman electric cars manufactured in China and imported to Europe.

The German brand, which considers the United States its second most important market outside Europe, acknowledged that the global trade environment remains complex. Competition in China—where its sales fell by 11.2% to 465,361 units—has intensified with the rise of local manufacturers like BYD and Xiaomi, offering electric vehicles with high technological content and lower prices than European brands. In response, BMW has lowered its sales forecasts for the Chinese market in the fourth quarter, although it still expects slight growth for the year as a whole.

Despite the challenges, the group's global deliveries increased by 2.4% up to September, with 1.79 million vehicles sold. Mini was the fastest-growing brand, with a rise of 23.7% (206,252 units), followed by Rolls-Royce (+3.3%) and BMW, which maintained similar levels to the previous year (+0.1%). In America, sales rose by 9.8%, driven by the United States, while Europe advanced by 8.6%.

The segment of electrified vehicles—pure electric and plug-in hybrids—continues to be a growth driver: between January and September, BMW sold 470,287 units, 15% more than a year earlier. Of these, 323,437 were fully electric (+10%) and 146,850 plug-in hybrids (+27.6%).

The Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Oliver Zipse, highlighted the strength of the business model and assured that the company has "all the necessary factors for continued success," based on innovation and an open technological strategy.

In parallel, BMW is advancing towards its new generation of electric models under the Neue Klasse platform, with its first vehicle, the iX3 SUV, already exceeding order expectations.