In January, new car registrations dropped 7.4% to 1.135 million vehicles in the European Union, Britain and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries, statistics by ACEA showed. BERLIN: European car sales fell in January, hit by a sluggish global economy, higher car taxes in some EU countries and uncertainty over Britain's departure from the bloc, the European Auto Industry Association ACEA ) said on Tuesday.In January, new car registrations dropped 7.4% to 1.135 million vehicles in the European Union, Britain and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries, statistics by ACEA showed.Sales fell 13.4% in France, 7.3% in Germany and 7.6% in Spain. In Sweden, a higher tax on cars , which went into effect in 2020, pushed sales down 18% in January, the biggest drop among EU countries, after a 109% jump in December.Volkswagen's sales were down 0.4% in January, while Renault and PSA Group posted a drop of 16.3% and 12.9% respectively. BMW was among the few automakers reporting an increase in European sales last month, rising 5.2%, while demand for rival Daimler fell 10.4%.The drop comes as the coronavirus outbreak in China, the world's largest automobile market, is expected to hit auto sector sales in January.

Source: Economic Times February 18, 2020 07:37 UTC