BERLIN (AP) — Car maker BMW AG says its sales were up 2.7 percent in November compared with a year earlier, putting the company on course for a record year thanks to strong demand in China and the U.S.

The company said Tuesday that the BMW Group, which also includes the Mini and Rolls-Royce brands, sold 174,996 cars worldwide last month. Between January and November, it sold nearly 1.78 million cars — a 6.8 percent gain over the first 11 months of 2012.

While sales in Europe slipped 0.3 percent in the January-November period, they rose 19.7 percent in China and 9.2 percent in the U.S.

BMW sold 1.85 million cars in 2012, a record figure.