The Munich-based carmaker reported a pre-tax profit of €508 million compared to a loss of €198 million for the same period in 2009. Group revenues grew by 8.1% from €11,509 million to €12,443 million. Actual sales of BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brand vehicles sold increased by 13.8% from 277,264 units to 315,614 units.

'The BMW Group has made a good start to 2010. We increased earnings significantly in the first quarter and are now back on a growth course on almost all car markets,' stated BMW chairman Norbert Reithofer. 'The BMW Group continues to make good progress with its Strategy Number ONE,' he added.

Mr Reithofer was also optimistic over the sales forecast for the full year and said that the launch of new products such as the 5 Series and the gradual recovery of the global economy will contribute to rising volumes. 'We intend to remain the world's leading provider of premium cars in 2010 and plan to increase our sales volume within a solid single-digit percentage range to over 1.3 million vehicles,' he underlined.

'We are aiming to achieve significantly higher group earnings in 2010 than in 2009, thus making a tangible step towards achieving the targets we have set for 2012,' he added.