BMW motors thanks to China

BMW's profit more than doubled in the second quarter on the back of soaring demand from China. The car manufacturer, which also owns Mini, reported a 115 per cent jump in net profit to €1.8bn (£1.6bn), as record car sales pushed revenues up by 17 per cent to €17.9bn.

Sales in China jumped by 52 per cent to 63,300 vehicles in the quarter, rapidly catching its home market of Germany, where 80,300 were sold. Worldwide, the group sold 450,608 vehicles. A company spokesman said: "We expect the business environment to remain favourable during the second half of 2011."