By DPA,
Berlin : New passenger car sales in Europe slumped by 5.5 percent last year following the end of government-backed incentives to encourage auto owners to upgrade their vehicles, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) said Friday.
A total of 13.36 million vehicles were registered in the European Union in 2010, the Brussels-based ACEA said in its latest monthly report. Car sales fell 3.2 percent in December compared with the same month in 2009.
Leading the fall was a hefty 23.4-percent drop in the region’s biggest market, Germany. Car sales fell by 9.2 percent in Italy.