For the first time since May car sales numbers for Munich’s BMW (Bayerische Motoren Werke) are rising in the important Chinese market. At a press conference in Munich yesterday the company announced that sales had risen by 10.9 per cent compared to the same month last year. Worldwide sales grew by 7.8 per cent.

Three German luxury-car brands (BMW, Mercedes Benz and Audi) are competing on the Chinese market for the number one spot in the segment. BMW is ahead but rival Mercedes Benz sales are growing faster because of popular new SUV’s (new GLC, GLE and GLA). Audi and BMW will start a new model offensive in the coming year.

Worldwide, Mercedes Benz was the best-selling luxury brand for the third consecutive month. Marc-Rene Tonn of Warburg Research said: “What’s encouraging to see is volume growth for all three carmakers in China, not only for the month of September but for the year so far. This shows that perhaps concerns for China were overblown.”

Since January, BMW has sold 1.64 million 7.5 per cent more cars than in the first nine months of 2014. With its BMW 7 series, the X1 and the Mini Clubman, the company is "on track for another year of record sales in 2015," BMW sales director Ian Robertson said.