In another troubling sign that the European Union is slipping ever deeper into recession, new car sales across the region have plummeted by 8.2% in 2012 hitting their lowest level since 1995, hinting at a troubling time for European car manufacturers.
According to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association the regions car makers across the Union saw car sales reach just 12.5 million last year. The European Manufacturers Association, made up of 18 car, bus and truck manufacturers including BMW, Peugeot and budget manufacturers such as Hyunadai.
Out of the 27 member nations it was only the UK that posted an increase in sales, with the number growing by 5.3% from 2011.
The Struggling economies of France and Spain saw declines in the double digits with December proving to be a particularly bad month for motoring.
“In December, new car registrations declined by a sharp 16.3% in the EU, continuing a downward trend commenced 15 months ago,” the association said.
“The decline is the steepest recorded in a month of December since 2008.”
Even the region’s biggest economy, Germany posted disappointing figures. One of the world’s biggest car manufacturers, it saw its car sales fall by 2.9% in 2012 compared to the previous year.
Elsewhere in Europe motor sales were even more dismal with Spain’s figures falling by a massive 13.4% and in France demand for new cars fell by as much as 13.9%. In Italy the figure dropped to 19.9%.
As usual Greece was the worst performing nation with new car registrations plummeting by 40.1% from 2011.
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