International car sales are set for a rise next year as US and China lead the way
CAR sales worldwide will reverse their decline next year, analysts at Groupama Asset Management said yesterday, as a strong recovery in the US and a pickup in trade in China offsets tumbling demand in Europe.
The analysts said they expected sales worldwide to rise four per cent in 2010 despite a drop off in government incentive schemes, after an eight per cent drop in 2009.
The US is set to experience the first upswing in sales after four consecutive years of decline, the analysts said.
Demand in Europe is set to fall five per cent in 2010 following on from a three per cent contraction this year, due largely to the falling German market, which makes up 30 per cent of Europe’s sales. Germany has put the brakes on scrappage incentives, which boosted sales earlier this year.
The analysts cautioned sales volumes in Europe would stay below the 2007 level for the next three years, but that production in the continent would rise five per cent in 2010 after dropping off by 16 per cent this year. This should bring about a recovery in revenue for the main European car makers, they added.