“We are pleased to see that passenger car registrations in the EU rose 6% in March marking 31 consecutive months of growth”, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), which represents franchised car and commercial vehicle retailers across the UK, commenting on figures published by ACEA (European Automobile Manufacturers' Association).
In March, passenger car registrations rose 6% compared to this time last year, reaching 1.7 million units.
Amongst the largest European markets Italy recorded the strongest growth with registrations up 17.4%, followed by France (+7.5%) and UK (+5.3%). In Germany (-0.04%) and Spain (-0.7%) registrations saw a minor decline.
Robinson continued, "In this first quarter new passenger car registrations rose 8.2% to 3,819,269 million units. This positive growth in the car market reflects the recovery that European economy is experiencing.
“We are confident that this trend will continue and that the major European car markets will continue to perform well throughout the remainder of the year.”
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Rupal Rawal, Press Officer Tel: 020 7307 3412 Mob: 07528 977 157 Press Office direct line: 020 7307 3422 Press Office fax: 020 7307 3406 Web: www.rmif.co.uk Email: rupal.rawal@rmif.co.uk
The Retail Motor Industry represents the interests of operators in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man providing sales and services to motorists and businesses. The RMI has a formal association with the independent Scottish Motor Trade Association which represents the retail motor industry in Scotland.