BMW on Tuesday stated its China sales have taken a hit this year due to the new coronavirus, but stuck to its target for increasing passenger car sales for the year, and said its worldwide supply chain has not been disrupted.
“There has been a significant impact in China,” Chief Executive Oliver Zipse informed journalists in a conference call.
The downturn in sales will last until March, and it is rather early to make predictions about whether the automaker would fail to meet its global sales targets, he stated.
“We see no impact outside China. We’re sticking to our target of achieving slight increase in car sales,” Zipse said.
BMW, which has plants in China, the United States and Europe, said its global supply chain had not been disrupted by travel prohibitions and logistics bottlenecks caused by the coronavirus.
“We only have short-term visibility. Supplies have been secured for the next three weeks,” Zipse said.