BMW Q1 sales overshadowed by global impact of Coronavirus

Group sales of BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce vehicles in the first quarter of 2020 plummeted by more than 20 percent year-on-year to a total of 477,111 units, the German luxury carmaker announced on Monday.

The results were "overshadowed" by the global impact of COVID-19 and "the effects of the temporary closure of a large number of retail outlets", BMW noted.

Sales in Europe, where BMW delivered 220,812 vehicles, fell by 18.3 percent. In Germany, sales only declined by 9 percent year-on-year to 67,882 units, according to BMW.

Similar to the development in Europe, BMW sales in the United States decreased by 17.4 percent and dropped to around 65,000 vehicles.

According to BMW, around 80 percent of all car dealers in Europe and 70 percent of those in the United States were currently closed due to the coronavirus. In a number of countries, including Germany, stationary retailers were currently legally prohibited from selling cars.

In China, first-quarter sales fell to 116,452 vehicles. However, this trend was reversed in March in a "welcome development". BMW already recorded a "sustainable recovery in this market."

"In China, we are seeing the first signs of recovery with a strong order intake," commented Pieter Nota, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Customer, Brands and Sales.

Only sales of electrified vehicles recorded a year-on-year growth of 13.9 percent. "This means we are also on track to meet the EU's CO2 targets. We do not see any necessity to defer climate protection goals," said Nota.

"During the current coronavirus pandemic, protecting employees and taking responsibility for society are the number one priority for the BMW Group. At the same time, it is important to safeguard the company's liquidity and secure its long-term success," BMW noted.

The German car maker announced that it would be "working closely" with its global supplier network to procure the "necessary respiratory masks and other medical equipment at short notice." Furthermore, BMW would also be reviewing the possibility of producing medical masks itself.

On Monday, U.S. bank JP Morgan lowered the price target for BMW from 50 to 48 euros, but left the rating at overweight. Currently trading at 47.17 euros per share, German luxury carmaker BMW almost lost 40 percent in share value since the start of 2020.