2014 was the best year ever for the German BMW Group, which sold close to 2.12 million cars last year, leaving previous sales records in the dust, the Munich-based company reported Friday.

Total deliveries rose nearly 8 percent, marking the fourth record year in a row, fueled by a 17-percent rise in demand in China and a 5.3-percent increase in the U.S.

“I am delighted that we achieved our target of selling more than two million vehicles in 2014, a new record for the BMW Group. We have seen good growth throughout the year, well spread across all major sales regions," Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, said in a statement.

Luxury fuels sales

BMW branded cars led the pack with nearly 1.8 million deliveries, a 9.5-percent increase compared to the year before. High-end SUVs drove sales, with registrations of BMW's 3-series model up by 2 percent to 476,792 vehicles, while the top-of-the-line 5-series saw sales shoot up by more than a third.

Its MINI small-car brand came in second, delivering just over 302,000 new cars in 2014, a dip of 0.9 percent on the previous year. However, MINI saw its best ever fourth quarter with sales up 17.2 percent, as well as a record December with demand jumping 21 percent.

2014 also marked the best year in the 111-year history of Rolls-Royce. The luxury brand celebrated record sales for a fifth consecutive year, with sales of more than 4,000 units.

“Rolls-Royce has seen strong sales worldwide, with double-digit increases in most regions. This exceptional growth means that deliveries have more than quadrupled since 2009,” said Peter Schwarzenbauer, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG.

The German group delivered 215,217 units in the last month of 2014 alone, 15.2 percent more than the same period the year before.

However, electric vehicle sales continue to be sluggish, with just 17,800 customers opting for the environmentally-friendly fleet. Nearly three-quarters of those sales occurred in the last six months of the year after the late-spring launch of the i-series in several major markets, including the U.S.

pad/hg (dpa, Reuters)