Finance
Automaker BMW cuts 2025 earnings forecast
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 7, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 7, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
BMW cuts its 2025 earnings forecast due to slow growth in China and US tariffs, impacting its financial outlook and ROCE.
BERLIN (Reuters) -BMW has cut its 2025 earnings forecast due to slow growth in China and U.S. import tariffs, the luxury automaker said on Tuesday.
The German company said it expected a slight decline in group earnings before tax, compared with previous guidance that they would be around the same level as in 2024.
It also reduced the expected return on capital employed (ROCE) for its automotive business to 8% to 10%, down from 9% to 13% previously.
BMW said it now expected that a high three-digit-million in reimbursements of customs duties from U.S. and German authorities would now be paid in 2026, and not 2025.
This would reduce expected free cash flow at its automotive business to above 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion), about half of the 5 billion euros previously assumed.
The company said its dividend payout ratio would remain in a range of 30% to 40% of net income attributable to BMW AG shareholders and that it remained committed to its share buyback programme.
($1 = 0.8563 euros)
(Reporting by Maria Martinez and Tristan Veyet. Editing by Mark Potter)
Earnings before tax (EBT) is a company's profit before tax expenses are deducted. It provides insight into a company's operational performance and is often used to assess profitability.
Return on capital employed (ROCE) is a financial ratio that measures a company's profitability and efficiency in using its capital. It is calculated by dividing earnings before interest and tax by total capital employed.
Free cash flow is the cash generated by a company after accounting for capital expenditures. It is an important measure as it indicates the cash available for distribution to shareholders or for reinvestment.
The dividend payout ratio is the percentage of earnings paid to shareholders in dividends. It helps investors understand how much profit is being returned to them versus being retained for growth.
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