EU February car sales increased for the sixth consecutive month, with a rise of 8% in registrations. However, in absolute figures, the 861,058 units registered marked the second lowest result to date for a month of February since ACEA, the automakers trade group, began keeping track in 2003 with the commencement of an enlarged EU.
From January to February, new passenger car registrations increased by 6.6%, totaling 1,796,787 light vehicles.
France was the only major auto market to face a downturn (-1.4% at 141,290).
In February 2014, France was the only major market to face a downturn (-1.4% at 141,290). All other significant markets contributed positively to the overall 8% expansion of the EU market, with growth ranging from +3% in the UK (68,736), +4.3% in Germany (209,349), +8.6% in Italy (118,328) to +17.8% (68,763) in Spain.
Two months into the year, most major markets posted growth contributing to the overall 6.6% upturn of the EU market. Demand for new passenger cars increased by 5.7% in Germany, 6.0% in Italy, 6.1% in the UK and 13.1% in Spain. France (-0.5%) was the only major market where new passenger car registrations declined in this period.
