The latest figures issued by the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) show that in May this year European Union (EU) new car registrations declined 5.9 percent year on year to 1,042,742 units. This is the lowest level recorded for a month of May since 1993 when new registrations stood below one million. Meanwhile, in the first five months of this year, new car registrations totaled 5,070,840 units in the EU, with a decrease of 6.8 percent from the same period of 2012.
Source: ACEA
In May, the UK was the only country to post year-on-year growth, with a rise of 11 percent, while most major markets indicated a downturn ranging from 2.6 percent in Spain to eight percent in Italy, 9.9 percent in Germany and 10.4 percent in France, all year on year.
In the first five months of 2013, Spain and Germany saw their markets shrink by 5.8 percent and 8.8 percent respectively, while Italy and France recorded double-digit declines, of 11.3 percent and 11.9 percent respectively, all year on year. The UK continued its positive trend in January-May, expanding by 9.3 percent on year-on-year basis.