Golden month that of August for the registrations European cars that have seen the first positive after 13 months of negative signs, with Italy which reported the best data.
According to the data That, the association of European manufacturers, in the month of August in the European Union, EFTA and the United Kingdom, registrations grew by Present in several = 3,4% (to 748.961) compared to the same month of 2021, also increasing the market share to 18,3% from 17% of August last year.
"First positive sign of the Western European car market in August after thirteen consecutive monthly declines" underlines the Promoter Studies Center. “The improvement affected all thirty countries of the area except for 7 small markets (Denmark, Finland, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Norway)”.
Cars: Italy in the lead. Germany +3%
Among the main markets of the Old Continent, the best country is Italy with a +9,9% followed, in order, by Spain (+9,1%), France (+3,8%), United Kingdom ( +3,4%) and Germany (+3%): overall, the five largest markets in the area accounted for 64,4% of registrations.
The figure for Italy is in line with what was disclosed by Italian Ministry of Transport at the beginning of September when it reported 71.190 registrations for August, an increase of 9,9% According to Gian Primo Quagliano, president of the Centro Studi Promotor, "registrations in Italy have returned to the levels of the 60s of the last century".
Stellantis jumped 11%, almost all brands positive
Il Stellantis Group in particular it registered 136.721 cars in Western Europe with an increase 11% compared to August 2021 with almost all brands in positive territory, says Acea: +23,1% for Peugeot, +12,9% for Opel/Vauxhall, +20,9% for Citroën, +34,7% for DS , +37,3% for Lancia, +59,3% for Alfa Romeo and +48,9% for Maserati. On the other hand, Fiat (-3,5%) and Jeep (-48,7%) are down.
However, the picture remains negative: July -10,4%, January-August -11,8%
Acea has also released the data of July which show a 10,6% drop in new car registrations for Europe and a 10,4% drop in the European Union, despite an already low comparison base due to the continuing shortage of semiconductors. All four major EU markets performed worse in July than a year ago with Germany (-12,9%) and Spain (-12,5%) posting the most pronounced declines and Italy showing a decline of 9,9%.
The group stellantis in July, 166.082 cars (-9,9%) were registered in Western Europe (EU, EFTA and United Kingdom). In eight months, group registrations totaled 1.390.088, down by 17,6% compared to the same period in 2021.
Despite the positive figure for August, the general situation is still difficult. “The growth signal remains very weak if we consider that in the period January-August 2022, compared to the same period of 2021, there was a decrease of 11,8% while compared to the same period in 2019 there is still a drop of 33,3%, Promotor still says that he does not see perspectives positive for the future: "the factors of the crisis that have not yet been overcome (pandemic, shortage of components, drop in the purchasing power of motorists, war in Ukraine) are adding the dizzying increase in energy costs and the growth of inflation which will end up having a significant impact on price lists as well”.
In particular, the Italian car market is still in a deep crisis, says the Centro Studi. “The positive result of August must be taken, but it does not significantly change the scenario which is still characterized by a crisis in both demand” he says.
Italian car market in August influenced by the incentive effect
In particular, the Italian car market is still in a deep crisis, says the Centro Studi. “The positive result of August must be understood, but the scenario which remains characterized by a crisis in demand does not significantly change”. According to industry experts, the growth in registrations in August in Italy could be attributed to an initial effect of the incentives (DPCM of 6 April) to the purchase of cars with traditional fuel systems but with limited emissions (from 61 to 135 grams of CO2 per kilometre).
On the other hand, the impact of the incentives provided for by this decree for ecological cars is zero or almost zero. “The government has undertaken to amend the provision of the aforementioned provision to make it more appropriate to the needs of the market, taking into account the indications of the sector. However, the announced changes are slow to emerge” says Promotor. In Italy, registrations of pure electric cars (BEV) in the period January-August 2022 are down by 20%, despite the incentives.
Secondo Quail, the prognosis for the Italian car market remains "confidential". Healing is still not in sight. THE price lists of cars have so far undergone moderate adjustments and the lack of product has made the discounts that the dealers normally granted almost disappear and now there is the possibility of significant increases of car price lists linked to the impact of the energy crisis on production costs.
Buyers turn to the second-hand market, which has grown by 20%
Rising new car prices aren't the only obstacle to buying. Sometimes it is also the biblical delivery times that discourage buyers who have therefore turned tothe used market. Which is responding in turn with a rise in prices.
Using index numbers Agpi, which measures the prices of used cars for sale on AutoScout24 and considers second-hand vehicles published for less than 18 weeks and with a value of less than 250.000 euros, in the last year the increases exceeded 20% and in three years the average cost has grown by as much as 33 percent. “Stock constraints and continuous high consumer demand,” he says Sergio Lanfranchi, AutoScout24 Study Center – have led to a constant increase in the selling prices of used cars also in the first 7 months of 2022. According to the AutoScout24 price index, the average value of a used car in the month of July 2022 has reached the threshold of around 21.600 euros, equal to +21,7% compared to the same month last year and +33,6% compared to July 2019.
