Helping you navigate the new normal since 2001
You never meet a shy and retiring car salesman. They are always bursting with confidence, about to sell you a tremendous deal. So we have to expect that the companies are always going to be confident about the future – even when it looks unpromising to everyone else. 2008 is close enough, that we can […]
Renault’s success with Dacia highlights changes underway in European auto markets Read More
Greek auto sales have been racing ahead in recent weeks. They are up 16% so far this year, as people seek ways to protect their money in the event of Greece leaving the euro. April saw the strongest rise, with sales up an astonishing 47% versus 2014. As The Telegraph noted: “People living in a […]
London follows Paris with city-wide electric vehicles and car sharing Read More
A mild winter, combined with 20% price discounts, has kept EU auto sales in growth mode. Latest data from ACEA shows January sales at 999k were the best for the month since 2011′s 1.042m. The chart above shows the 12-month trend line since 2005, to avoid seasonal fluctuations with the monthly data (blue line): Sales were […]
Discounts support EU auto sales as Paris plans diesel car ban Read More
Low growth and low-cost have become the dominant features of Europe’s auto market. Europe’s modest rise in auto sales continued in June, with volumes up 4.5% versus 2013. But as the auto association reminds us, this “is the second lowest level in the month of June since reporting began in 2003“. And the detail of the […]
GM focuses on low-cost autos, as European sales remain weak Read More
The European auto market continues at 20-year lows, with sales down 4% in January – September. Whilst September’s sales appeared stronger, up 5% versus 2012, this was only due to Spain and the UK. Spain boosted volume by 10k due to a €2.7k ($3.7k) government hand-out for people trading in an older vehicle. Whilst UK volumes were up 40k due to a credit […]
Greece’s debt default saga seems never-ending. And it is tempting to hope that it only matters to those suffering in Greece and the PIIGS countries (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Spain).
But a look at auto sales trends since 2005 gives a differen…
Greece’s problems lead to EU auto industry job cuts Read More