BMW sees drop in 15% to 20% of the luxury market in 2016

Sao Paulo-luxury car segment is increasingly shaken by the crisis of the brazilian economy. BMW designs for this year a fall of between 15% and market 20%, after a wave of strong optimism. The automaker doesn''t see a resumption before 2019.
"We have two tough years ahead," said on Thursday (19) the President and CEO of BMW Group in Brazil, Helder Bangera.
The Executive reveals that, currently, the factory of Araquari (SC) operates on a shift, to a level of 16 1000 units per year. The installed capacity of the plant is about 30 1000 units.
To face the retraction of the domestic market, the automaker decided to export from Brazil factory, the X 1 model for the us.
"Our plan is very flexible and for this reason we can convince the array to export to the us market," points out.
The expectation of the Group''s Board to the u.s. units 2000 from next July, for a period of one year. From there, Bangera claims that other strategies will be studied.
In addition, the Group evaluates the production of a sixth model in plant of Santa Catarina, but second Bangera nothing yet defined in this sense. Today, are manufactured in the line of Araquari four models BMW and the Countryman, MINI brand.
The CEO of the Group highlighted that BMW will not enter into a price war to gain market. In announcing local production in mid-2012, the projected 30% of BMW 35% share in the premium segment, considering as direct competitors Audi and Mercedes-Benz.
"Our biggest concern today is the profitability", says the Executive. Even with local manufacturing, last year the BMW was behind German rivals in the premium market Brazilian plates issued (excluding sales of the MINI brand).
For 2016, Bangera claims that the group does not disclose sales projections, but considers that the performance of BMW must be "in line with the fall in the market."
Perspectives
In recent years, the segment of luxury cars came presenting important growth. In 2015, had high sales of about 20%.
However, the deterioration of the economy ended up splattered on the premium market. Recently, Mercedes estimates a fall of approximately 10% in 2016 for the segment of the three.
"I still see a difficult period ahead of us, but we want to keep the BMW as a reference in the luxury market," ponders Bangera.
Yesterday afternoon, the automaker presented the national press the 7 Series, the brand''s top-of-the-line sedan in the country. However, the experience of the V8 engine with numerous cutting-edge technologies is to few: costs from 709 1000 R$.