EU car registrations down 8.4% in December

Brussels – European passenger car registrations fell by 8.4% year-on-year in December 2018, as demand declined for the fourth month in a row, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).

The downward trend has been linked in part to the introduction of the WLTP emissions testing measures across the EU in September 2018.

For last year as a whole, however, registrations remained stable, with a modest 0.1% growth compared to 2017, ACEA reported 16 Jan.

Demand was mostly driven by the central European countries, where new car registrations grew by 8.0% in 2018.

Results were diverse among the five major EU markets, with Spain showing 7.0% growth, followed by France at 3.0%. Registrations fell slightly in Germany at 0.2%, while demand contracted by 3.1% in Italy and 6.8% in the UK.