UNRAE issues lower Italian car sales forecast for 2012

Italy's national association of foreign carmakers UNRAE has reduced its forecast for car sales in Italy in 2012 to 1.6 million units, down from its previous prediction of 1.68 million units.
 
UNRAE stated that its lower car sales forecast was based on the prediction of Italian employers' federation Confindustria that Italy's gross domestic product (GDP) would decline by 1.6 percent in 2012, compared to previous expectations for a 0.2 percent rise.
 
According to the data released by UNRAE, in December last year Italian car sales totaled 111,212 units, down 15.3 percent year on year. In the whole of 2011, Italian car sales amounted to 1,748,143 units, down 10.9 percent year on year.