German car sales increase 3% in August to end six months of declines

German car sales rose 3 percent in August despite ongoing production challenges due to a shortage of components such as semiconductors.

The result marked the first rise in monthly market sales since February.

Registrations for the month were 199,183, data from the KBA motor transport authority showed on Monday.

Stellantis' DS premium brand was the biggest monthly winner with registrations up 177 percent for a 0.1 percent market share.

Total sales of full-electric vehicles rose 11 percent for a 16.1 percent market share.

Other monthly winners included Land Rover, up 121 percent; Dacia, up 76 percent; Smart, up 84 percent; Renault, up 48 percent; and Porsche, also up 48 percent.

German premium brands had a mixed month, with Mercedes-Benz up 31 percent; Audi up 22 percent, but BMW down 1.3 percent.

VW brand, the German market leader, saw registrations rise 5 percent, while Ford was up 13 percent and Opel's volume grew 1.3 percent.

Ongoing supply-chain problems mean automakers are being forced to reduce production as they struggle to access microchips and other important components.

Through August, registrations are down 9.8 percent to 1.64 million.