An employee wearing a protective face mask sits behind a plastic screen at a service counter at a Renault showroom in Lille, France.
European car sales showed the first signs of a tepid recovery in May as showrooms reopened after a two-month shutdown because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to data from the industry association ACEA.
Passenger vehicle registrations in the European Union, the European Free Trade Association and the UK fell 57 percent. While that is the worst May since ACEA started tracking the data in 1990, it was an improvement over the 78 percent plunge in April.
The exact shape of a potential recovery is still unclear as automakers from Volkswagen Group to Fiat Chrysler Automobiles prepare to announce results for what likely will be a devastating second quarter.
In the U.S., Ford forecast a $5 billion loss for the three months through June.
The industry is hoping that consumers will drive an improvement this summer by turning to cars for their holidays instead of flying to far-away destinations. U.S. customers bought SUVs and trucks in droves in May, spurring a sales rebound.
Another positive signal is coming from China, where car sales rose for the first time in almost a year last month. The region has become a focus for European automakers, who are hoping better business there will make up for muted registrations at home.
Despite the rebound, European sales through May have dropped 43 percent, in a sign that a recovery will take some time.
Registrations in the region are forecast to decline by as much as a fifth in 2020, according to Bloomberg Intelligence's Michael Dean.
All European countries showed double-digit percentage drops last month, though some did better than others.
Germany's May registrations declined 50 percent, a figure matched in France and Italy. In Spain sales plunged 73 percent, while the UK they fell 89 percent.
Meanwhile, companies are cutting costs wherever possible. Renault announced in May it would reduce staff levels worldwide, while the transmission and technology supplier ZF Friedrichshafen is reported to plan to cut as many as 15,000 jobs.
European governments are trying to prop up demand with stimulus programs, though not all are targeted directly at the automotive industry.
* Download PDF here for European registrations in May
Germany has unveiled a 130 billion euro ($147 billion) package focused on a value-added tax reduction and electric car subsidies, leaving out broader car-buying incentives demanded by the industry. France has announced plans to offer some of the most generous incentives of any country to buy an EV.
Spain's government, by contrast, this week announced a 3.75 billion-euro program specifically for the automotive industry.
