German top-of-the-range carmaker BMW said Monday that it sold a record number of vehicles worldwide last year, powered by new models, but its performance slowed in China.

"2015 was the most successful year ever for the BMW group with annual sales setting a new record for the fifth year in a row," the group said in a statement.

A total of 2.247 million BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce vehicles were delivered to customers around the world last year, an increase of 6.1 percent on the previous year, the statement said.

In December alone, however, sales slipped by 0.8 percent to 213,537 vehicles, BMW said.

"Our sales grew consistently throughout the year, despite headwinds in some markets. We expect many of those challenges to continue into 2016," said sales and marketing chief Ian Robertson, speaking at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Sales in Europe were up by 9.4 percent, sales in the Americas rose by 2.8 percent and sales in Asia climbed by 4.2 percent.

"Strong sales were reported worldwide, with the exception of mainland China where significant headwinds have impacted on the entire luxury sector," BMW said.

In China alone, sales grew by 1.7 percent last year, the German group said.