Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/764316
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 18 DECEMBER 2016 II Motoring EUROPEAN new-car sales rose 5.6 percent to 1.19 mil- lion in November with Renault, Seat, Hyundai, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz gaining vol- ume while PSA Group, Opel/ Vauxhall, Volvo and Jaguar Land Rover were among au- tomakers whose sales fell. Registrations advanced to 1.19 million, industry associa- tion ACEA said in a statement. With December still to come, sales across the European Union and EFTA countries are up 7.1 percent for the year so far. Renault posted a 17 percent increase in sales with Renault brand's volume up 20 percent, helped by new models such as the Espace minivan, Kadjar SUV and Megane compact. Dacia sales increased 7.7 percent. Volkswagen Group gained market share in Europe for the first time since its diesel-emis- sions test cheating became known in September 2015. VW Group sales jumped 6.3 percent, propelled by a 6.8 percent increase at Audi, a 29 percent surge at Seat and 21 percent increase in Porsche sales. The company's main VW marque rose 0.8 percent, narrowing its market share to 11.7 percent from 12.3 percent a year ago. VW Group's mar- ket share rose to 24.8 percent, up from 24.6 percent a year earlier. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Renault have been among the biggest beneficiaries of Volkswagen's tarnished image. Fiat Chrysler sales gained 10 percent, with Fiat sales rising 8 percent and Jeep volume jumping 11 percent. Also outperforming the mar- ket were Daimler, whose vol- ume rose by 12 percent with Mercedes sales up 13 percent and Smart up 5 percent and BMW, whose sales rose 12 percent with BMW brand's volume gaining 13 percent and Mini sales up 4 percent. Sales at PSA fell by 4.2 percent, dragged down by a 35 percent at its upscale DS brand, which has an aging lineup. Peugeot brand sales fell 1 percent and Citroen's volume dropped by 4.5 per- cent. Ford, with sales rising just 2.1 percent, and Opel, whose volume dropped 1 percent, were among the market-share losers. Volvo sales fell 7.1 percent while Jaguar Land Rover dropped 8.9 percent. Among Asian brands, Hyun- dai sales grew by 13 percent, Kia sales rose by 7.7 percent and Toyota brand was up 7.1 percent. Nissan sales rose by 2.8 percent. Europe's auto sector has been recovering after hitting a two-decade low in 2013, supported by economic growth and improved consumer con- fidence in countries including Germany and France. While sales growth this year has slowed as the market shows signs of peaking, demand remains resilient in the face of VW's emissions-cheating crisis, Brexit and political uncertainty amid a series of elections and referendums. "European sales developed very well in 2016," Peter Fuss, a partner at consultancy EY said in a statement. "However, next year growth will be sig- nificantly lower, which is partly a result of the high starting point but also the increasing economic and political head- winds." Despite uncertainty, prepara- tions for Brexit haven't signifi- cantly hit demand in the UK yet, with registrations rising 2.9 percent in November and increasing 2.5 percent so far this year. November sales in Germany, the region's biggest market, gained 1.5 percent. French sales rose 8.5 percent and the Italian market grew by 8.2 percent. In Spain, registra- tions jumped 14 percent. Britain's decision to exit the EU will probably start hurting UK sales next year, accord- ing to LMC Automotive, which predicts that car-delivery growth in western Europe will slow to 1.4 percent in 2017 from 5.9 percent this year. European sales rise 6% as Renault surges and VW regains share Europe's auto sector has been recovering after hitting a two-decade low in 2013, supported by economic growth and improved consumer confidence in countries including Germany and France Registrations advanced to 1.19 million, industry association ACEA said in a statement