EU car registrations continue to fall in July, August

New registrations of passenger vehicles in the EU declined year-on-year in July and August, with last month registering a steep decline and signalling difficulties in recovery as Europe-wide lockdowns ease.

New registrations fell by 5.7pc in July to 1.072mn units, down from 1.137mn units a year earlier. August saw a sharper decline, to 769,525 units from 949,034 units in August 2019, according to data from the European Automotive Manufacturers Association (ACEA).

The August decline dashed hopes of a speedy comeback for carmakers and suggests that subsidy-related recoveries in some EU car markets were short-lived, with France ending its €5,000 scrappage scheme at the end of July. Rising rates of Covid-19 in some EU countries now also threaten to impact sales later in the year.

New registrations were down by 32pc in January-August to 6.123mn cars. The ACEA warned in June that it expects new registrations to decline by 25pc this year compared with 2019.

"Automobile manufacturers are unfortunately now facing very strong headwinds in the aftermath of the coronavirus crisis, which has hit our sector with an unprecedented force," ACEA director general Eric-Mark Huitema said. "In the interest of the economic health of the continent, we are calling on EU and national policy makers to urgently step up their political, economic and practical support to our industry."

The automotive industry is one of the leading consumers of metals in Europe and recent figures indicate demand will remain subdued from the sector.

Seven EU member states recorded increases in July, with registrations in France up by 3.9pc and Spain up by 1.1pc. Registrations in Italy declined by 10.1pc in July.

But car registrations in France and Spain declined sharply in August, falling by 19.8pc in France and 10.1pc in Spain compared with August 2019. Italian registrations only declined by 0.4pc, a strong performance compared with the other large EU markets.

In Germany — Europe's largest car market — registrations were down by 5.4pc in July and 20pc in August. Outside of the EU, UK registrations were up by 11.3pc in July, but fell by 5.8pc in August.

By Thomas Kavanagh