LMC Automotive European Passenger Car Sales Update (April 2022)

2022/05/09

Summary

  • The West European selling rate dropped to 8.8 mn units/year in April, from 9.0 mn units/year in March, with supply chain bottlenecks still the key reason for the depressed level of registration statistics. The war in Ukraine, as well as lockdowns in China, will likely exacerbate supply issues, meaning vehicle sales will continue to suffer from a lack of adequate supply.
  • In Germany, the selling rate fell even further in April, to 2.0 mn units/year, from 2.4 mn units/year previously. The UK PV selling rate increased to 1.7 mn units/year last month, from 1.2 mn units/year in March. For France, the selling rate fell to 1.2 mn units/year, from an already disappointing 1.4 mn units/year previously. In Spain, the selling rate increased to 787k, from 574k units/year the previous month, though demand is still poor by historical standards. Finally, in Italy, the selling rate remained at 1.1 mn units/year last month.
  • Our forecast for 2022 has been cut since last month and now sees a year‐on‐year contraction for the West European market. Global supply issues show no significant signs of easing, while underlying demand prospects are eroding too. Consumer confidence in the eurozone has nosedived in the last two months, now at a level not seen since the initial emergence of the pandemic in 2020, and households will experience a serious squeeze to real income this year. Supply issues do remain the key determinant for registrations for now, however.

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