German car firms take pole position

Germany’s car industry has confounded analyst predictions, again.

BMW became the third of the nation’s top three carmakers to beat analyst estimates with a 19% increase in first-quarter profit. Volkswagen and Daimler-Benz last week also said earnings rose, countering expectations for a decline.

Carmakers and their suppliers are the best performing shares in Europe this year as demand for BMW, Mercedes and Audi models thrives in the US and China.