EU car registrations still on downward trend

Brussels - New passenger car registrations in Europe (EU25+EFTA) fell for a fourth consecutive month in May 2007. In total, 1.442 million new cars were registered, -1.6 percent less than last year, according to data from the European federation of car makers, ACEA.

New EU member states showed a constant upward trend (+11.1 percent), while Western Europe deepened its loss (-2.4 percent). The calendar effect seems to be limited since only few countries had one extra working day (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Hungary).

Among the more traditional markets only Italy increased its new car registrations (+7.3 percent) which where enhanced by government scrapping incentives. The opposite was true in Germany (-11.1 percent), France (-2.8 percent) and the UK (-2.2 percent), all of whom saw their markets decrease, while the Spanish market was flat (-0.2 percent).

Just as in the preceding months, new EU member states strengthen their result in May 2007

(+11.1 percent). Apart from Hungary (-20.1 percent), Slovakia (-9.4 percent) and the Czech Republic (-3 percent), all other countries posted high increases. Lithuania, Latvia and Romania performed best, posting +57.1 percent, +35.7 percent and +29.8 percent growths, respectively. Cumulative figures confirmed the new car registrations upward trend in the new EU member states (+9.2 percent).

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Download press release from ACEA