JULY 10, 2001

BMW booms as F1 program boosts car sales

YOU cannot prove that the BMW Formula 1 program is having a vast effect on the company's sales but there is no doubt that the Munich-based car manufacturer is not suffering from its engagement in the sport. The company announced on Tuesday that its sales for the month of June were up by 6.2% compared to the same period last year while many other companies are reporting falling sales in the face of economic insecurity. BMW sold 81,317 vehicles in June and took its six month total to almost half a million, which is up nearly 10% on last year.

The German market has been particularly slow this year with a decline of around 4% in sales but BMW has managed to buck the trend there with an increase of one percent, while across Europe as a whole sales in the first half of the year are up five percent.