In the end, even the German company that seemed to have held up better than its domestic rivals had to raise the white flag in the face of escalating tariffs and worsening performance in China. In the first quarter of 2026, BMW’s pre-tax profit plummeted by 25%, and the operating margin decreased significantly, mainly due to the effect of tariffs imposed by the US and the difficult market situation in China.
THE FIRST QUARTER OF THE YEAR
In detail, BMW announced that pre-tax profits stood at 2.3 billion euros in the first quarter, compared to 3.1 billion euros in the previous year. The group’s revenue decreased by 8.1%, stopping at 31 billion euros. The EBIT margin related to the automaker’s core business was 5% in the first three months of the year, down from 6.9% in the comparison period. Earnings before financial result amounted to 2,004 million euros in the first quarter of 2026 (-36.2%). The financial result was 344 million euros in the first three months of the year (-29 million euros).
THE MARKETS WHERE BMW STRUGGLES
In the quarter, the group delivered a total of 565,780 cars to customers worldwide, considering the three brands in its portfolio (BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce), with a slowdown of 3.5%. Deliveries increased by 3.1% in the European sales area, mainly driven by the domestic market: in Germany, it recorded a 7.0% increase.
BMW LOSES GROUND IN CHINA
Numbers that do not allow the Bavarian company to face lightly the halt in China, where deliveries were 10% lower than the previous year’s figure. Domestic competition is too strong in a market that is also saturating, while on the other side of the Atlantic, the suspension of subsidies for electrified vehicles, imposed by Donald Trump and effective last September 30, negatively affected plug-in BMWs.
However, despite the cold shower related to the first quarterly report of the year, the group confirms its forecasts for 2026, although it admits that the “global automotive market will register a slight decline.” Also for this reason, BMW was trading up 7.20% mid-morning on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, ranking among the best: despite the declining quarterly results, analysts seem willing to reward the Bavarian giant which, also through the decision to confirm the annual outlook, has so far proven to be the German automotive industry less exposed to the current crisis period affecting the entire sector.
