A total of 182,800 BMW and Mini vehicles have been sold in China over the first half of the year, Gasgoo.com (Chinese) reported today. The figure, which comes directly from BMW AG, is 15 percent higher than the 158,956 sales figure reported last year.

BMW China President and CEO Karsten Engel is very proud of the manufacturer's sales performance, stating that it had made significant strides in strengthening its brand image and sustaining high customer satisfaction. Mr. Engel added that the manufacturer will continue to increase its performance in the latter half of the year.

BMW vehicles made up the majority of the manufacturer's sales in China, 170,730 units, over the six month time period. That figure represents year-on-year growth of 15.7 percent. The 5 Series' sales grew a full 28.2 percent, while those of the 3 Series and X1 increased 20.7 percent and 22.4 percent, respectively. However, most impressive was the X3 (pictured), whose Chinese sales volume nearly doubled from the first half of 2012 to the first half of this year.

Mini remains a very niche brand in the country, with its sales for the six month period totaling just 12,070 units. That figure is equivalent to year-on-year growth of just 6.3 percent. 4,052 Mini Countryman crossovers were sold over the said time period, 29.6 percent higher than the amount sold a year ago.

Teambill Company