UK car sales rise for 8th consecutive month in October
SMMT raises 2012 sales forecast to 2 million
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The UK joined Germany as one of only two major European car markets to report a rise in new-car sales in October, as deliveries rose 12.1 percent, the eighth consecutive monthly rise in the market this year.
Vehicle sales in the UK rose to 151,252, bucking current demand trends in Europe and outpacing the 5 percent rise to 1.77 million recorded so far this year, the car manufacturing lobby SMMT said on Tuesday.
"Despite uncertainty in the European economy, the UK new car market continues to grow," said SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt.
The SMMT also raised its forecast for the full-year, expecting now over 2.0 million new car registrations in 2012, compared to a forecast of 1.92 million made at the beginning of the year.
The UK new-car market has now shown growth in every month this year, apart from February, which is traditionally a low-volume month, the SMMT said.
German market up; France, Spain, Italy down
On Friday, industry groups in France and Spain reported monthly drops of 7.8 percent and 21.7 percent respectively as mounting economic problems in euro-zone countries continue to keep customers out of showrooms. On Monday, data showed a fall of 12.3 percent in Italian new-car sales.
In Germany, the region's biggest single market, sales expanded slightly by 0.5 percent, according to figures published by the VDIK importers association on Friday.
Reuters contributed to this report
