The vehicle group BMW is preparing for more difficult waters. In terms of both sales figures and deliveries, the board of directors is a little more cautious when it comes to calculations – but the profit margin should hold up, according to the presentation of the half-year figures. The reason for this is a favorable price development – i.e. no need for discounts – and the shift to more expensive vehicles. That meant a decent tailwind in the second quarter, which went better than experts thought.
The car sales announced by BMW CEO Oliver Zipse are “slightly below” the previous year’s level of 2.5 million cars is due to the supply bottlenecks. According to BMW, high inflation and interest rate increases should normalize the above-average order backlog, particularly in Europe, by the end of the year.
An Ifo survey among German car manufacturers, also published yesterday, agrees with the more cautious tones: “The possibilities for car manufacturers to pass on rising material costs to consumers seem to have reached a limit,” said the head of the Ifo Center for Industrial Economics and new technologies, Oliver Falck. The barometer for price expectations fell to 38.6 points from 73.1 in June. Car manufacturers are also worried that they will have to shut down production if gas is rationed.