Good Morning, Ladies and Gentlemen!
Today, I would like to address three main points:
- Our electro model programme.
- Our market performance.
- And our profitability.
Many of you were at our first #NEXTGen in the BMW Welt at the end of
June. We were very pleased with the positive feedback from the media
and social networks.
At the event, we showed our clear approach to the future: To offer
sustainable mobility with a variety of drive technologies.
And our focus is clearly on the customer. Our customers’ needs and
desires are diverse across the globe – as are the regions and
locations where they live. Therefore, we are offering our customers
various, attractive solutions during this phase of great technological
change in our industry.
Our approach towards sustainable mobility is holistic: Including
vehicles, production and the supply chain.
Let me give you two examples:
First: As of next year, all our 31 production sites in 15 countries
will obtain the electricity they need from renewable energies.
Second: We are already developing our fifth-generation electric drive
train. It will be first used to power the BMW iX3 starting next year.
From then on, our electric engines will no longer use rare earths.
We see all these things as part of our overall responsibility.
We have set ourselves ambitious goals for the electrification of our fleet:
- By 2021, we will double sales of our electric models and plug-in hybrids.
- In 2023 – two years earlier than planned – we will have 25
electrified models on the market. More than half will be fully electric. - By 2025, we expect our electrified vehicles to be growing by an
average of more than 30 percent per year.
As you can see: We are making great strides in this area. The growth
curve is exponential.
In Germany alone, we sold over 10,000 electrified vehicles in the
first six months of 2019. That is around 60 percent more than in the
same period last year. Sales of our fully electric BMW i3 surged 85
percent in our domestic market. Three of the five top-selling plug-in
hybrids in Germany are from the BMW Group.
In the first half of the year, i3 sales climbed 21 percent worldwide,
even though it has been on the market since 2013.
Electrification also continues at MINI:
- Sales of the Countryman plug-in hybrid were up more than 50 percent.
- In July, we presented our fully electric MINI in Rotterdam and
Oxford: The MINI Cooper SE will roll off the production line in
Oxford later this year. It’s enjoying strong popularity, with over
40,000 interested customers.
Already today, with ten models, we offer customers a wide range of
electrified vehicles – in all segments.
At #NEXTGen, we made it very clear: We support the aim of a
CO2-neutral society – the same goal formulated by the new
European Commission president for the EU by 2050.
At the BMW Group, we are consequently expanding our fully electric
range, with:
- the iX3 from 2020
- the BMW i4, and the iNEXT from 2021.
- Our new technology flagship – the iNEXT – will provide us with
building blocks for the future.
To ensure that we can focus on both present and future needs and
still remain profitable, we are relying on a mix of different
technologies. That is clearly what our customers want.
And now onto the second topic: our sales performance.
We are growing – in a declining and highly competitive world car
market. The BMW Group achieved new all-time highs in both the second
quarter and the first half of 2019.
In the second quarter, that also applied to the BMW, Rolls-Royce and
BMW Motorrad brands, as well as the BMW Group.
In our largest sales market, China, we beat the trend with growth of
almost 24 percent in the second quarter.
And we won market share. Through June, the brand BMW:
- Was number one in the US.
- Was number one in the UK.
- And in Germany, we grew more strongly than the entire market and
the premium segment.
Globally, we were able to significantly reduce the difference between
the brand BMW and Mercedes-Benz in the first half-year. In the month
of June, BMW was ahead of Mercedes.
At Group level we continue to lead the premium segment.
Our new model rollout continues at full speed: The new BMW 3 Series
and the new Z4 have been in showrooms since March. The new BMW 7
Series will now also be launched in China.
Sales of our X models were up by almost a quarter in the first
half-year. The new BMW X7 has been available since March and enjoys
high demand as segment leader. The X7 brings the popular and highly
successful X family to seven models.
In early July, we also announced the new BMW X6. This completes the
renewal of our X series. Over the past two years, all X models from X1
to X7 have either been refreshed, newly launched, or launched for the
very first time.
The new BMW 8 Series is part of our rollout plan in the luxury
segment: In addition to the Coupé, the convertible has been available
since March. Since July, production has begun for three more 8 Series
models at our Dingolfing plant: The Gran Coupé and the M models of the
Coupé and Convertible. We expect the Gran Coupé to be the top-selling
8 Series model.
In late September, BMW will launch the new 1 Series, the new 3 Series
Touring and the revised X1. The X1 will also be available as a plug-in
hybrid from 2020. This variant was previously only available in China.
As you know, the brand BMW will be releasing 21 new or revised models
this year alone.
And now to my third point: our profitability.
The BMW Group has often successfully mastered turbulent times in its
past. Today, volatility, changing conditions and increasing regulatory
requirements are part of our everyday business.
The BMW Group will continue its successful development – and is
investing heavily in future technologies to ensure this.
We are able to do so because we are profitable.
Our EBIT margin in the Automotive Segment was 6.5 percent in the
second quarter. Therefore, we are on course for the expected target
range of between 4.5 and 6.5 percent for 2019.
I would like to emphasise again: For the first half-year, the EBIT
margin without the provision related to ongoing antitrust allegations
from the EU Commission was 6.1 percent. This would therefore fall
within our original guidance of 6 to 8 percent for the entire year.
As you can see: The BMW Group is clearly on track to meet its goals
for the financial year 2019.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Allow me to finish on a personal note.
This is my last quarterly conference as CEO of BMW AG. I joined the
Board of Management in the midst of the global economic and financial
crisis, back in December 2008.
As part of the Board, I could play a significant role in shaping the
course of the BMW Group for more than ten years – over four of those
as chairman.
During this time, we forged new paths. I firmly believe: The BMW
Group is robust, innovative and in a strong position to manage the
complex challenges facing the company today.
BMW has been my professional home for more than 27 years. You will
understand, I’m sure, that the BMW Group will always have a special
place in my heart.
I wish my successor, Oliver Zipse, much success in the coming years
as CEO.
I would also like to thank all of you for the valuable exchanges and
discussions we have had over the years. No doubt, you will continue to
follow our industry and the BMW Group very closely.
Although everyone has the same challenges, not every company is the
same. The BMW Group continues to forge its own path. Think of the
discussions around diesel. The BMW Group did not deceive its customers.
I am sure: The BMW Group will continue to be successful in the future.
Thank you!