Volkswagen brand with more than a 12% share leads all other auto brands by more than a 2:1 ratio.
In September, EU sales showed demand for new passenger cars was slightly up in the countries in the European Union (+0.6%), totaling 1,231,147 units. However, EU car sales year-to-date are down once again. If this negative sales trend continues – as it has for the past three years – it will mark the fourth straight year that car sales in Europe have decreased. As in other regions, the automobile industry is a major contributor to economic growth and jobs.
During the first nine months of 2011, 10,121,423 new cars were registered in the region, or 1.1% less than in the same period a year ago. Fiat, the owner of Chrysler, Ford and General Motors are struggling to keep their European operations viable as all are losing market share.
September sales results showed a slight increase because of German demand. Germany was the only major market to post growth (+8.1%) while the downturn ranged from 0.8% in the UK to 1.3% in Spain, 1.4% in France and 5.7% in Italy, which is experiencing political and economic chaos with the government likely to fall. Volkswagen Group and Volkswagen brand remain the clear volume leaders in Europe.
Year-to-date performances were varied across the region, leading to an overall 1.1% decline. Looking at the largest countries, the UK (-5.0%), Italy (-11.3%) and Spain (-20.7%) all saw their markets contract, while France remained stable (+0.2%), and Germany posted a double-digit growth (+10.8%).
