BMW said 163,965 BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce vehicles were delivered to customers in February, an increase of 7.9 percent on the same month last year.

Sales of BMW branded cars rose 9.1 percent, to 143,419 vehicles thanks to the introduction of the X1 compact offroader, the company said.

Ian Robertson, member of the board of management of BMW AG responsible for sales and marketing said: “We remain optimistic that we will continue to achieve steady sales growth as the year progresses.”