European Union new car registrations fall sharply

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Demand for new passenger cars fell sharply across the European Union in May, reflecting weak consumer confidence in the wake of the financial crisis.

The <a href="http://www.acea.be/index.php/news/news_detail/passenger_cars_registrations_-7.7_over_five_months_-8.7_in_may" title="Link to ACEA new car sales figures for May" >European Automobile Manufacturers' Association</a> said new car registrations totalled 1,106,845 vehicles, down 8.7% compared to the same month last year.

France led the decline with a 16.2% market contraction, closely followed by Italy, which fell 14.3%.

Only the UK market grew, rising 7.9%.

EU-wide five-month sales figures for 2012 fell 7.7% to 5,442,326 vehicles.

In France, the hardest hit market, sales of Peugeot cars were down 18.1% in May to 72,114, while Citroen sales fell 21.1% to 60,447.

Even Germany, which has seen an overall rise of 0.3% for the first five months of 2012, fell 4.8% last month.

Volkswagen sales dropped 7.8% to 142,628, while BMW sales fell 3.7% to 56,883.

The disappointing sales figures have prompted Sergio Marchionne, chief executive of Fiat, to reduce European capital investment by 500m euros (£406m) in 2012.

By contrast, the UK market is performing strongly, with Jaguar Land Rover sales up 34.5% in May.