Sales by Market

New-car registrations jumped 74 percent last month to 1.08 million but were still 25 percent below 2019 levels. "Underlying demand remains mostly weak," researcher LMC Automotive said, noting that sales in Western Europe showed "uninspiring improvement."

Volumes stood at roughly 156,000 last month with sales to businesses helping to boost the result.

Smart, Seat, Mini and BMW had big gains while Honda, Jaguar and Mercedes were among losers in a rebounding market.

By exempting fully electric vehicles from taxes imposed on internal combustion engines, Norway has turned its car market into a testing ground for automakers seeking a path to a future without fossil fuels.