In the last month of the year, buyer activity declined in almost all key European Union markets. The only exception was Italy, where sales increased by two percent.
Germany still holds the position of the largest automotive market in Europe. In December, 237,058 passenger cars were sold here, which is 6.7% less than a year earlier.
France took the second position — residents of the country purchased 165,390 cars, with a decline of 14.5%.
The top three is rounded out by the United Kingdom with 144,089 cars sold (-5.5%).
Among European automakers, the first line, as usual, was taken by VW Group. The concern sold 231,011 cars in EU markets, showing a decline of 8.7% compared to December last year.
PSA Group is second — 157,505 cars sold, which is 5.8% less than the result of a year ago.
The third indicator in terms of sales volume is RENAULT Group — 117,906 units, with a decline of 16.6%.
Looking at the whole of 2018, car registrations in Europe remained approximately at the level of the previous year. The decline in demand observed over the last four months led to a final annual growth of only +0.1%. However, even such a slight increase allowed maintaining positive dynamics for the fifth consecutive year.
The main driver of demand in 2018 was the countries of Central Europe, where registrations of new cars grew by 8.0%. Among the five leading EU markets, the picture was mixed: Spain showed growth of 7.0%, France — 3.0%, while Germany slightly declined (-0.2%), and Italy and the United Kingdom demonstrated more noticeable reductions — by 3.1% and 6.8%, respectively.
