The German car market showed some signs of recovery in November, as sales rose for the second month in a row, according to official figures published Monday.
Just over 260,000 new cars were registered in November, the KBA federal transport authority said in a statement — a 31.4-percent increase from a year earlier.
Auto manufacturers have struggled throughout the year with supply issues and shortages of key components, which have slowed sales despite full order books.
November’s positive reading however follows another 16.8-percent bump in sales in October.
“At the end of an altogether disappointing year for cars there’s some hope for a late burst,” the VDIK car importers‘ federation president Reinhard Zirpel said.
Total registrations since January however remained 2.4 percent below their 2021 level — already an historically bad year for sales.
The improvement in sales showed “that the availability of semiconductors and other components has improved”, easing production constraints, EY analyst Peter Fuss said.
The industry was however still facing a “mixed” outlook in 2023 as the European economy threatens to pitch into recession, EY said.
Sales of battery-powered cars in November improved more than the market as a whole, increasing by 44 percent, with almost 58,000 units sold.
Together with hybrid vehicles, more than 100,000 fully- or partially-electric cars were registered in a single month “for the first time ever”, according to the VDA auto industry association.
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