Commercial vehicle registrations up 7.7% in October

Brussels, 25/11/2011 – In October, new commercial vehicle registrations were up 7.7%** in the EU*, amounting to 162,901 units**, reflecting similar results in France (+7.8%) and Germany (+7.2%), the largest EU markets. The UK also contributed positively (+11.1%). From January to October, Spain was the only major market to contract (-4.9%). Germany (+19.5%), the UK (+17.8%) and France (5.5%) all posted growth, leading to an overall 10.8% increase.

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

In October, demand for vans grew by 5.8%**, with 131,482 new registrations**. France (+4.7%), the UK (+6.7%) and Germany (+12.5%) saw their markets expand. Spain was the only major one to decline (- 5.0%). Ten months into the year, the number of new van registrations in the EU* amounted to 1,308,741 units**, or 7.5% more than in the same period last year**. France recorded 2.1% more vehicles and remained the largest market, followed by the UK (+17.3%) and Germany (+18.3%) which performed similarly. Spain faced an 8.7% downturn.

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

The segment of heavy trucks recorded an increase of 18.2%** in the EU* over the month of October, as a total of 21,552 new vehicles** was registered across the region where growth prevailed. Germany was the only market to shrink (-6.4%), while all other important markets posted double-digit growths ranging from 22.0% in Spain to 25.2% in France and 34.4% in the UK. Over ten months, the EU* registered 197,078 new heavy trucks, or 40.8% more than in the same period a year ago**. With the only exception of Greece (-65.8%), all markets expanded. The major ones saw their new registrations rise by 25.9% (Spain), 27.1% (Germany), 45.9% (the UK) and 49.4% (France).

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

In October, new truck registrations increased by 15.7%** in the EU*, amounting to 28,115 units. Despite a 3.2% downturn, Germany remained the largest market, followed by France (+27.3%), the UK (+29.9%) and Spain (+20.8%). From January to October, 262,216 new trucks were registered** across the EU*, or 32.4% more than in the same period in 2010. All major markets posted growth. The increase was 23.9% in Germany, 24.8% in Spain, 30.8% in the UK and 43.7% in France.

New Buses & Coaches over 3.5t

October demand for buses and coaches was up 26.8%** in the EU*, totaling 3,304 units. France remained the largest market, recording 939 new vehicles, followed by the UK (626 units) and Germany (389). Ten months into the year, results were diverse across major markets, as Spain (+13.9%) and France (+20.2%) posted growth while Germany (-3.6%) and the UK (-21.6%) faced a downturn. Overall, the EU* market remained stable during the period, registering 28,402 new vehicles this year against 28,393 last year.