China Already World's Top Market for BMW 7 Series

China is already the top market for BMW’s luxurious 7-series sedans, the company revealed. It also forecast that China will become its top all-around market in the next decade as competition ramps up.

China surpassed the U.K. in June of this year as BMW’s number three market. The Munich-based prestige car brand sold 122,000 cars in China during the first nine months of 2010, nearly twice as many as last year.

BMW’s swift growth is is likely to slow as the market matures. There is also the likelihood that sales will be adversely affected by China’s plans to raise taxes on cars with bigger than 4-liter engines. Currently the maximum tax is 660 yuan. That could be raised to the 5,400 yuan range in the near future as China seeks to curb emissions.

BEIJING, Nov. 8