European auto-market faced 24% dip in annual sales: Report

European auto dealer witnessed the worst annual sales performance in 2020 as the new vehicle registration declined by almost 24% due to the coronavirus pandemic, making it the highest annual drop since 1990, the European
Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) said on Tuesday.

“The European Union passenger car market contracted by 23.7% to 9.9 million vehicles as a
direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the ACEA said in a statement.

“2020 saw the biggest yearly drop in car demand since records began (in 1990). All 27 EU markets recorded double-digit declines,” it added

Among the biggest automobile markets, Spain recorded the sharpest fall
at 32.3% for the year, with Italy down 27.9% and France 25.5%, according to ACEA

Notably, Germany, which is bloc’s strongest economy, dropped its auto revenue by 19.1%.

For
the month of December alone, EU car sales were down 3.3% at just over
one million vehicles.

The association cited lockdown measures, that discouraged buyers to proceed the sales, to be the key reason behind the contraction. 

However, Volkswagen AG and PSA Group saw
a strong end to the year with 8.2% and 1.7% surge in total vehicle
registrations respectively.

On the other hand, one of Europe’s top-selling
carmakers, Daimler recorded 15% downfall in sales last month while it was a
stronger pull for Renault and BMW AG with sale dive of 16%  and 9.5% for BMW AG.