Economic recovery prompts hope for European car market
Registration of new cars in Europe rose at an annual rate of 4.8 per cent in July to 1.02m vehicles – only the second increase this year.
Over the first seven months of the year, new car registrations are down 5.2 per cent to 7.46m vehicles, and the European car market is heading for its fourth consecutive year of contraction.
But some are hopeful that a good second quarter may be the start of a recovery. Matthias Williams, president of VDA – the German auto industry body that collected the data – said the positive result in July is a good first step towards stabilisation.
He said that recovery in western Europe – particularly in struggling countries like Spain, Portugal and Greece – are being reflected in the car market.