BMW sales up 14.6 per cent in April

FRANKFURT: Luxury car maker BMW AG says its sales were up 14.6 per cent on the year in April _ bolstered by rising demand in Europe and the US and big gains in Asia.

The Munich-based automaker, whose brands also include Mini and Rolls-Royce, said Monday it sold nearly 116,400 cars worldwide last month. Ian Robertson, who oversees the company's sales and marketing, pointed to ``growing market demand.''

In the US, BMW's biggest export market, sales rose 9 per cent in April with 21,111 cars sold. The Asian market saw an increase of nearly 65 percent while sales in Europe were up nearly 4 percent.

BMW aims to sell more than 1.3 million cars worldwide in 2010.