BMW China sales in October up 81% to 9,558 cars

Shanghai, November 10 (Gasgoo.com) BMW AG, the world's largest maker of luxury cars, said yesterday that it sold 9,558 cars of its BMW and Mini brands in China last month, up 81% from a year earlier, the Wall Street Journal reported.

BMW saw its China sales in the first ten months rise 36.7% to 71,952 units, the German automaker said in a statement. By the end of September, China had overtaken Italy as the fourth-largest market for BMW after Germany, the U.S. and the UK.

Also yesterday BMW said that its global sales were up 2% year on year in October to 115,252 cars, driven by robust demand in China, India and Brazil, three booming markets where this year to date BMW has exceeded the sales it achieved in the full year of 2008.

BMW operates a Chinese venture with Brilliance China -- BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd, which produces BMW 3 series and 5 series models at a plant in northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang, Liaoning province.

China's passenger car sales surged 79.6% year on year to 923,154 units last month, boosted by the government's tax cuts and strong sales during the National Day holiday week (Oct. 1-8), an industry association said.