European passenger car sales halved in May from 2019 and fell by 41.5pc in the first five months of 2020 from the same period last year.
New car sales shrunk in double digits over the prior year period across the 27 markets of the European Union (EU), according to European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) data released on Wednesday.
Spain saw the steepest decline in car sales, which fell 72.7pc to 34,337 units in the country in May 2020 from 125,623 units in the same month last year. Sales fell by 50.3pc in France, 49.6pc in Italy, and 49.5pc in Germany during the same month under comparison.
Across the EU, passenger vehicle sales for May stood at 581,161 units, down 52.3pc from 1.22mn units in the same month last year. Sales dropped by 41.5pc in the January-May period to 3.33mn units from 5.69mn units in January-May 2019.
Manufacturer-wise sales
Fiat-Chrysler’s car sales fell 55.3pc in May to 42,982 units sold from 96,089 units in the same month last year.
The Volkswagen group, which holds 25pc of the passenger car market in the EU, sold 145,195 units in May, down 52.4pc from 305,116 units in the prior year period. Renault’s car sales during the month declined by 52.5pc to 69,230 vehicles from 145,656 units in the May 2019.
Sales at Hyundai, Daimler AG, and Toyota also halved in May compared with the same month last year.