German Car Market Continues To Decline Sharply

2023 Author: Eric Donovan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 09:36

In the first five months of the year, almost ten percent fewer cars were registered nationwide than a year ago. In May the decrease was as much as 11 percent, reports the Federal Motor Transport Authority.

The car market in Germany continues to decline sharply. In May, around 293,500 new cars hit the streets, 11.1 percent fewer than in the same month of the previous year, announced the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) on Tuesday in Flensburg. For the first five months, the new registrations add up to 1.28 million cars; this corresponds to a decrease of 9.6 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. The day before, the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) blamed the VAT increase at the beginning of the year as well as the uncertainty among car buyers due to high gasoline prices and the climate debate for the weak market.

Opel and Ford are particularly affected

Of the brands produced in Germany, Ford with a 14.3 percent decline and Opel with a decline of 15.5 percent were particularly affected by the reluctance of car buyers in the first five months. In contrast, Mercedes (minus 0.4 percent), Audi (minus 6.4 percent) and BMW / Mini (minus 8.9 percent) coped somewhat better with the declining market. Porsche even achieved a plus of three percent in the first five months. The market leader VW lost a little more sales than the market and sold 11.6 percent fewer cars.

Among the larger international brands there were almost only losers in the first few months, with the exception of the VW Group manufacturer Skoda, which grew by 7.5 percent. Even Toyota, a car brand that has been growing continuously on the German market for years, suffered a decline of 4.4 percent. Brands like Nissan and smart declined by more than a third. (dpa)