EU car sales fell 6.9% in April

ERJ staff report (LMH)

Brussels - Some 1 017 912 new passenger cars were registered in the

EU in April, a 6.9 percent drop compared with the same month of 2011,

according to ACEA, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association.

Four months into the year, new registrations were 7.5 percent lower

in the EU than a year earlier, adding up to 4 332 342 units. No calendar

effect occurred as the month counted the same number of working days as

in April 2011 throughout the region.

In April, markets across the EU (excluding Malta) performed

diversely, leading to an overall 6.9 percent decline in new car

registrations. The UK (+3.3 percent) and Germany (+2.9 percent) were the

only major markets to post growth, while France contracted by 1.9

percent. Italy (-18.0 percent) and Spain (-21.7 percent) recorded

double-digit downturns.

From January to April, Germany (+1.8 percent) and the UK (+1.4

percent) sustained demand in the region while the rest of the major

markets faced contractions ranging from -7.0 percent in Spain to -17.5

percent in France and -20.2 percent in Italy.

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Press release from ACEA