BMW Blames Falling Revenue on Weak Dollar

The Munich-based car manufacturer BMW said it lost 2.1 percent in profits in 2003 because of the weakness of the U.S. dollar compared with the euro. The company reported revenues of €41.53 billion ($51.4 billion) in 2003 – down from €42.41 billion the previous year. Minus the toll taken by currency fluctuations, BMW said that sales rose more than four percent. Based on the strength of a "positive trend" in sales, the luxury carmaker confirmed that it will meet earnings forecasts for the current year. By volume, the BMW group sold 1.1 million BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce cars in 2003.