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Xiaofei Xu

BMW could be approaching the end of the tunnel in China as signs of stabilisation raise hopes of a turnaround after the German carmaker reported that sales dropped by double digits in the key market in 2025.
“Transaction prices in the market for our products have stabilised … and are actually improving slightly compared to [the third quarter],” said Walter Mertl, chief financial officer, during a press conference on Thursday.
“If the run rate continues this way, we have the opportunity to go back to prior year levels in China,” he said, adding that the company’s products had been well received and dealerships were operating more smoothly.
The slight optimism came after the group posted another year of negative results in its single biggest market, where sales dropped by 12.5 per cent.
CEO Oliver Zipse said sales in China did not meet the group’s target last year “due to the intense competitive market environment”. He added that China was the only major market where BMW sales fell in 2025.
In broader terms, the group saw a 3 per cent drop in its net profit to €7.45 billion (US$8.6 billion) – much better than its German peer Mercedes-Benz, which reported that net profit in 2025 almost halved.
BMW is betting on the roll-out of its Neue Klasse electric vehicle (EV) models, which have seen strong demand in other markets, to help it win back Chinese customers, senior managers said. The first such car to hit the mainland, the China-made version of the iX3, is set to launch at the Beijing Auto Show in April. Zipse called it “the most Chinese car” the German group had ever built.
The group was also deepening its cooperation with Chinese tech giants, working with Alibaba Group Holding-backed Banma Network Technology to develop an in-car voice control system and incorporating DeepSeek’s artificial intelligence technology into its in-car system, Zipse said. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.
Like Mercedes, BMW was also working with Chinese firm Momenta to develop its advanced driver-assistance system for the mainland market.
While BMW might be seeing positive signs in the world’s biggest automotive market, German brands in general are still struggling.

Porsche reported a 26 per cent drop in deliveries to Greater China, including Hong Kong, in 2025, and the group’s chief financial officer Jochen Breckner announced that the brand would cut the number of dealerships in China to 80 from around 100 by the end of this year.
The news came as new car sales were plunging in China after the government dialled back a subsidy scheme. Passenger car sales during the first two months of the year declined by 18.9 per cent from a year earlier, with EV sales falling by 25.7 per cent, according to data published by the China Passenger Car Association.
Chinese EV buyers were exempt from the country’s 10 per cent vehicle sales tax last year, but are now paying a 5 per cent levy as Beijing gradually phases out the incentive. The tax is set to return to the full 10 per cent rate in 2028.


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German carmaker reports a solid start to 2026 amid stabilising prices, with new EV model, its ‘most Chinese car’ ever, coming soon


German carmaker reports a solid start to 2026 amid stabilising prices, with new EV model, its ‘most Chinese car’ ever, coming soon.


BMW sees smoother road ahead in China after sales skid in 2025

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}German carmaker reports a solid start to 2026 amid stabilising prices, with new EV model, its ‘most Chinese car’ ever, coming soon

German carmaker reports a solid start to 2026 amid stabilising prices, with new EV model, its ‘most Chinese car’ ever, coming soon