According to the Economic and Steel Market Outlook 2011-2012/Q4 2011 Report from the Economic Committee of the European Steel Association (EUROFER), in the first eight months of the current year European Union (EU) passenger car sales were down 1.3 percent from the same period of 2010. The weakest markets were Spain, Greece and Portugal due to the significantly low levels of consumer confidence caused by the debt crisis.
During the summer months, commercial vehicles sales continued to grow in the EU; particularly in August, sales increased by almost 16 percent year on year. Year-to-date, sales increased more than 12 percent compared to the same period of the previous year.
EUROFER stated that automotive output grew more than 10 percent in the second quarter of 2011 compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
The outlook for private consumption remains weak given the decreasing consumer confidence observed in recent months. Also, the outlook for investment is uncertain due to the general business environment.
According to EUROFER, EU automotive output is forecast to rise by over 10 percent in 2011 and by a further three percent in 2012.