BMW Group clearly focused on mobility of the future

The BMW Group remains firmly committed to following its forward-looking strategy, despite the current challenging conditions. In line with its Strategy NUMBER ONE > NEXT, the BMW Group continues to invest extensively in tomorrow’s technologies and is maintaining its steady course, despite highly volatile geopolitical and trade policy developments.

“Our forward-looking approach has absolute priority. Particularly in these volatile times, we are maintaining our focus on the future and taking the decisions that will lead to tomorrow’s success,” said Harald Krüger, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG, in Munich on Wednesday. “We stand for trust and continuity. The BMW Group has more than 100 years of experience in dealing with transformation and volatility in a rapidly changing world. This is why we see challenging conditions as an opportunity to move forward and strengthen our position as market leader. We are implementing our strategy rigorously and investing extensively in the technologies of the future, despite today’s volatile environment,” Krüger emphasised.

Research and development expenses during the first nine months of 2018 exceeded last year’s corresponding figure by around € 400 million and totalled € 3,881 million (+11.4%). As previously reported, full-year R&D expenses are likely to amount to as much as seven per cent of Group revenues in 2018 (2017: 6.2%). This level of expenditure was reached in the third quarter, with an R&D ratio of 6.9%. At € 2,889 million, capital expenditure over the nine-month period from January to September was also up on the previous year (2017: € 2,817 million). In addition to ramping up the roll-out of new models, the focus is on expanding business in the fields of electric mobility and autonomous driving. As the world’s leading provider of premium mobility, the BMW Group puts the needs and desires of its customers first and is continuing its ground-breaking work on the four ACES topics (Autonomous, Connected, Electrified and Services/Shared).

“We remain an ambitious company, setting ourselves challenging targets. However, along with the rest of the industry, we are increasingly confronted with adverse external factors, the negative impact of which cannot be fully offset,” commented Nicolas Peter, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Finance. “The BMW Group is extremely flexible and we are countering these developments rigorously. We remain unconditionally focused on the issues of crucial importance for the future, while at the same time optimising our internal processes. The BMW Group’s strong financial performance remains the basis for sustained success, enabling our company to play a key role in shaping the transformation currently taking place in our industry.” Despite the current very challenging environment, the BMW Group’s Automotive segment generated free cash flow of € 2,042 million (2017: € 2,703 million) in the first nine months of the current year.