In a trend being seen throughout the auto industry, BMW announced that it will be raising its 2009 U.S. model pricing by 2.1 percent across the board. The German automaker blamed rising raw materials costs for the U.S. price hike.
Jim O’Donnell, president of BMW of North America, noted in a statement that the price increase is necessary to cover the rising costs raw materials but that BMW is doing all it can to prevent a huge price increase at the retail level. “At BMW, we’re responding with a number of internal efficiency improvements to offset our increased costs so that we can keep this price increase modest.”
The price increase marks the automaker’s second price increase since June, according to Automotive News. Some of the price increase will also help offset the weak value of the dollar, which is eating into BMW ’s profits. It is projected that BMW’s profits will be down 40 percent this year.
BMW’s 2009 model year cars are expected to hit dealer showrooms in October.
