BMW aims to outsell Mercedes by 2020: CEO tells Manager Magazin

BMW (BMWG.DE) aims to overtake rival Mercedes-Benz in terms of annual deliveries within two years, Chief Executive Harald Krueger told German monthly Manager Magazin.

“In 2020 we will be the No.1 in terms of unit sales again. I am holding my team to that target, even if it won’t be a walk in the park,” the magazine quoted Krueger as saying in an interview published on Thursday. 

BMW slipped behind Mercedes in 2016, after holding onto the global luxury sales crown for about a decade.

It reported record sales in 2017 on strong demand for its sport-utility vehicles and the overhauled 1-Series compact but was still outsold by Mercedes, owned by Daimler (DAIGn.DE).

Rents boost U.S. core CPI; retail sales rise solidly

Underlying U.S. consumer prices recorded their largest increase in 11 months in December amid strong gains in the cost of rental accommodation and healthcare, bolstering expectations that inflation will accelerate this year. 

The strengthening domestic demand was also underscored by other data on Friday showing retail sales increasing at a solid clip in December. The reports likely keep the Federal Reserve on course to raise interest rates at least three times this year. The U.S. central bank hiked borrowing costs three times in 2017.

The Labor Department said its Consumer Price Index excluding the volatile food and energy components rose 0.3 percent last month also as prices for new motor vehicles, used cars and trucks and motor vehicle insurance increased.

That was the biggest advance in the so-called core CPI since January and followed a 0.1 percent gain in November. Core CPI increased 1.8 percent in the 12 months through December, picking up from 1.7 percent in November.

April U.S. auto sales seen down nearly 2 percent: JD Power and LMC

U.S. auto sales in April likely fell almost 2 percent from a year earlier, with consumer discounts remaining at levels high enough to threaten the industry's long-term health, industry consultants J.D. Power and LMC Automotive said on Tuesday.

The consultancies also lowered their full-year 2017 forecast for new vehicle sales to 17.5 million units, from a previous forecast of 17.6 million.

April U.S. new vehicle sales will be about 1.48 million units, a drop of nearly 2 percent from 1.51 million units a year earlier, the consultancies said.

The forecast was based on the first 13 selling days of the month. Automakers are expected to report April U.S. sales results on May 2.

The seasonally adjusted annualized rate for the month will be 17.5 million vehicles, flat versus the same month in 2016.

Retail sales to consumers, which do not include multiple fleet sales to rental agencies, businesses and government, were set to decline more than 0.2 percent in April.

U.S. sales of new cars and trucks hit a record high of 17.55 million units in 2016. But as the market has begun to saturate, automakers have been hiking incentives to entice consumers to buy.

Fears that the U.S. auto industry has peaked were stoked earlier this month when automakers released sales figures for March that came in at an annualized rate of around 16.6 million, below market expectations of 17.2 million units.