2015 was the year of redemption for the car market, which drove the recovery of consumption in Italy. Household expenditure for the purchase of new cars increased by 18,2%, to 15,6 billion euro, while that for used vehicles rose by 5,1%, to 16 billion. New car registrations by companies and households, on the other hand, increased by 13,6% year on year. From these data, contained in the 2016 edition of the Findomestic Observatory on consumption, it emerges that the recovery is underway throughout the country, but the picture is by no means homogeneous between the various regions.
In absolute terms, as can be expected, the highest number of registrations was recorded in Lombardy (over 262 cars), but if we look at the ranking of those who grew the most between 2014 and 2015, there is no shortage of surprises. On the podium, two steps out of three belong to the South: the most marked positive variation is that of Basilicata (+30,6%), followed by Trentino Alto Adige (+26,9%) and, at a greater distance, from Sicilia (+17,7%). In fourth position is theUmbria (+17,4%), which precedes two other regions of the South: la Calabria (+15,4%) and the Puglia (+14,6%). In seventh place we find the Friuli Venezia Giulia on a par with the Toscana (+14,5%), ahead of Sardinia (+14,1%) and others Lazio (+ 13,9%).
Il Molise, which closes the top-10, is the first of the regions in which the growth rate of new car registrations (+13,4%) was lower than the national average (+13,6%). A short distance follow theAbruzzo (+ 13,3%), la Campania (+12,3%) and the Liguria (+12%). The ranking is completed by a series of regions in the Centre-North: Veneto (+ 11,8%), Lombardia (+ 10%), Emilia Romagna (+ 9,7%), Marche (+ 9,3%), Piemonte (+ 7,4%) and Valle d'Aosta (+ 3,2%).
In all, there were 1,56 million new registrations last year: a share that is still very far from the over two million pre-crisis levels in 2007 (when, however, the market was also supported by a series of incentives), but which marks a decisive step forward compared to the sales recorded in 2014 (1,37 million) and 2013 (1,31 million).
The current recovery is recording such positive numbers mainly because the automotive sector was one of the sectors most affected by the crisis. However, the improvement in household disposable income should not be underestimated, which, according to the Findomestic Observatory, stood at just over 2015 thousand euros per household in 18 (+1,1%) and in the first part of 2016 has already given " positive signals”, leaving room for optimism also for the remainder of the year, “despite the uncertain international context”.
