At the same time, in quantitative terms, the indicator exceeded the level of August 2008, making it the highest in the last ten years.
Last month, the leading EU markets showed quite mixed dynamics. For example, Italy and Spain recorded growth in new passenger car registrations of 15.8% and 13%, respectively. France and Germany also showed positive dynamics (+9.4% and +3.5%). But in the UK, on the contrary, the number of registrations decreased by 6.4%.
The absolute leader among EU car markets remains Germany, where 253,679 passenger cars were sold in a month.
France holds the second position in the ranking: residents of this country purchased 107,449 cars in August.
The top three is closed by Italy, where sales reached 83,363 units.
Among European manufacturers, VW Group took first place, as usual, selling 218,335 cars in the EU market, which is 2.8% more than in August last year.
The second line is occupied by PSA Group with a result of 133,541 cars sold, which is 79% higher than August 2016 figures — this is a consequence of the purchase of Opel and Vauxhall brands from GM.
The third result in terms of sales volume is Renault Group: 88,656 units (an increase of 13%).
Over eight months of 2017, 10,232,658 cars were registered in the EU countries, which is 4.5% more than in the same period a year earlier. Almost all key markets in the region made a positive contribution to the overall growth: Italy showed +9.1%, Spain — +6.9%, France — +4.2%, Germany — +2.9%. Meanwhile, the UK recorded a slight drop in sales of 2.4%. At the same time, the new EU member states distinguished themselves with particularly noticeable dynamics (+14.3%), making a significant contribution to the overall regional results.
