EU commercial vehicle registrations fell in February

An employee walks past new cars at the parking lot of Changan Ford Mazda Automobile Co. Ltd, Ford Motor's joint venture in China, in Chongqing Municipality, October 12, 2010. REUTERS/Stringer

Brussels – In February, demand for new commercial vehicles was down in all major markets, leading to an overall 11.3 percent decline in the EU, according to new data from ACEA, the association of European vehicle producers.

The heavy truck segment declined by 9.8 percent in February, amounting to 15,211 units. Looking at the major markets, France (+1.0 percent) and the UK (+18.5 percent) both posted growth while Spain (-15.9 percent), Germany (-17.1 percent) and Italy (-25.3 percent) recorded negative results.

In January-February, new heavy truck registrations declined by 2.5 percent in the EU, representing a total of 34,206 units. The French and British markets expanded by 2.3 percent and 28.2 percent respectively. Downturn prevailed in the other three major markets: Germany (-9.3 percent), Spain (-14.1 percent) and Italy (-19.5 percent).

The month of February saw new mid-sized truck registrations fall by 8.2 percent in the EU, to a total of 20,312 units. Results varied across countries as France and the UK grew by 4.5 percent and 24.5 percent respectively, while Germany (-15.6 percent), Spain (-17.3 percent) and Italy (-27.6 percent) recorded double-digit downturns.

Over the first two months, Germany remained the largest market despite a 9.0 percent contraction, followed by France (+5.5 percent) and the UK (+37.4 percent) which both saw their demand increase. Spain (-16.7 percent) and Italy (-21.4 percent) fared less well, recording sharp drops. In total, the EU registered 44,811 new trucks from January to February, or 1.8 percent less than in the same period last year.

In February, 103,720 new vans were registered, or 12.1 percent less than in the same month a year earlier. All significant markets shrank, from -3.4 percent in Germany to -4.0 percent in France, -25.2 percent in Spain, -26.4 percent in the UK and -30.1 percent in Italy.

Two months into the year, new van registrations decreased by 9.2 percent in the EU, totaling 217,891 units. Germany was the only market to slightly expand (+0.8 percent) whereas France (-3.4 percent), the UK (-20.3 percent), Spain (-22.8 percent) and Italy (-31.5 percent) all performed less well than in the same period last year.

In February, new bus and coach registrations grew by 2.5 percent in the EU, boosted by demand in the UK (91.8 percent) and Germany (+13.1 percent). From January to February, the same two markets remained the largest, growing by 52.0 percent and 16.7 percent respectively. France (-7.3 percent) ranked third, followed by Italy (-29.7 percent) and Spain (-53.7 percent). Overall demand in the EU fell by 1.2 percent during that period.

Press release from ACEA

Source: european-rubber-journal.com