From January to April, the downturn recorded in the UK (8.5%), Italy (-19.0%) and Spain (-26.3%) resulted in a 2.7% decline in overall EU demand for new vehicles.
During the month of April sales of new cars in the European Union declined 4.1% from what was a weak April in the EU last year. New registrations amounted to 1,089,118 units, according to the latest data released from ACEA, the automakers’ trade group in the EU.
Four months into a disappointing 2011, EU registrations totaled 4,674,457 units, or 2.7% fewer than the same period a year earlier.
April results showed a contraction in all major markets, except for Germany (+2.6%), leading to an overall 4.1% decline. Demand was down 2.2% in Italy, 7.4% in the United Kingdom, 11.1% in France and 23.3% in Spain. Germany remains the biggest European vehicle market with 266,251 new registrations, followed by France (169,757), Italy (157,309), the UK (137,746) and Spain (71,808).
European sales results are of concern for U.S. taxpayers because they can undermine the results at General Motors and Chrysler, which is controlled by Fiat. Both Opel and Fiat are struggling in Europe. Even at Ford Motor results are negatively affected by Europe, which remains a drag on earnings.
Ford now appears caught by two unforeseen macro-economic trends that are largely beyond its short term control – the collapse of Western European economies where Ford is a major player, and the growth of India and China, where Ford is a minor factor
From January to April, the downturn recorded in the UK (8.5%), Italy (-19.0%) and Spain (-26.3%) resulted in a 2.7% decline in overall EU demand for new vehicles. Germany, the largest market, registered more than 1 million units in the first four months of 2011, or 10.7% more than in the same period last year, followed by France with 817,211 new cars (+4.0%).
The European passenger car market shrank for the third straight year in 2010, with registrations declining by 5.5%, from 2009. With a total of 13,360,599 new units registered throughout the year, manufacturing remains well below the peak of more than 16 million recorded in 2007 before the collapse of the global financial markets caused the ongoing Great Recession. (See EU Auto Sales Slump Continues in 2010 for Third Straight Year)
