Second-quarter profits indicate that BMW is still the best when it comes to luxury cars makers.

• BMW’s net profit for the 2nd quarter rose to $1.1 billion, and sales rose 12.5%.
• Although the luxury car market was hit hard by the economic downturn, there has been a faster-than-expected rebound.
• The new generation 5-Series is expected to boost sales even further.

Facts & Figures

• BMW is the world’s best-selling luxury car maker, ahead of Audi and Mercedes-Benz.
• In the first 6 months of 2010, 696,026 BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce cars were sold.
• BMW now expects sales to rise by approximately 10% (to more than 1.4 million cars) in 2010, which is significantly more than expected at the beginning of the year.

Best Quote

“Sharp sales volume growth on major markets and a high-value model mix are the main reasons for the strong second-quarter performance. [BMW] improved efficiency significantly in all areas of the company.” – Norbert Reithofer, Cheif Executive, BMW