Commercial vehicle registrations: -7.6% over four months; +3.6% in April

Brussels, 29/05/2013 In April, registrations of new commercial vehicles increased (+3.6%) for the first time since December 2011, mainly sustained by demand for new vans (+5.8%). This year, the EU counted on average two more working days compared to the same month in 2012. In absolute figures, the total number of registrations was about 100,000 units below the pre-crisis level recorded in April 2008. Looking at the major markets, the UK significantly expanded (+29.5%), while Spain (+7.0%) and Germany (+3.7%) recorded more moderate growths. The French (-3.8%) and Italian (-20.2%) markets shrank. Four months into the year, only the UK posted growth (+11.3%), as downturn prevailed in France (-9.0%), Germany (-11.2%), Spain (-12.9%) and Italy (-23.9%). Overall, the EU* registered 545,049 new vehicles, or 7.6% less than in the first four months of 2012.

New Light Commercial Vehicles up to 3.5t – “vans”

Vans was the only segment to post growth in April (+5.8%), totaling 116,657 units. The UK (+43.0%), Spain (+11.5%), and Germany (+6.6%) contributed positively to the upturn. On the other hand, France (-4.0%) and Italy (-22.2%) saw their demand decline. From January to April, new van registrations were down in all major markets, except in the UK (+17.6%), falling by 8.8% in France, 9.9% in Germany, 12.0% in Spain and 25.0% in Italy. A total of 449,094 vehicles was registered in the EU* over the first four months of the year, or 6.3% less than in the same period a year ago.

New Heavy Commercial Vehicles over 16t (excluding Buses & Coaches) – “heavy trucks”

New registrations of heavy trucks decreased by 5.8% in April, with 18,252 units recorded. The Italian market slightly expanded (+2.7%), while the German (-2.0%), Dutch (-3.3%), French (-4.8%), Spanish (-17.5%) and UK (-17.9%) contracted. Over four months, all significant markets shrank, from -13.6% in France to -13.7% in Italy, -14.0% in the UK, -14.4% in Germany, -18.1% in the Netherlands and -19.7% in Spain, leading to an overall 13.8% downturn in the EU*.

New Commercial Vehicles over 3.5t (excluding Buses & Coaches) – “trucks”

In April, demand for new trucks was down 5.2%, totaling 24,066 units. Downturn prevailed across significant markets, ranging from -3.4% in Germany to -3.9% in the Netherlands, -4.4% in Italy, -4.5% in France, -12.9% in the UK and -16.1% in Spain. From January to April, all important markets recorded a double-digit decline as demand dropped by 12.9% in France, 14.6% in Germany, 15.4% in the UK, 17.7% in Italy, 19.4% in Spain and 20.2% in the Netherlands, leading to an overall 13.8% contraction in the region. Germany remained the largest market in the truck segment, accounting for over 30% of the 86,251 new registrations.

New Buses & Coaches over 3.5t

In April, new bus and coach registrations fell by 3.1% in the EU*. France (+27.7%), Germany (+26.1%) and Italy (+2.0%) performed better than last year, while the UK (-18.0%) and Spanish (-20.8%) markets shrank significantly. From January to April, France was the only major market to record positive results (+15.6%), while downturn reached -19.1% in the UK, -8.2% in Spain, -4.8% in Italy and -3.1% in Germany. Over the four-month period, the EU recorded a total of 9,704 new buses and coaches, or 6.4% less than last year. *