European Car Sales to Fall in 2019 on Brexit, Slow Demand

(Bloomberg) -- European car sales are expected to drop this year due to uncertainty surrounding Brexit and a flattening of demand, according to a revised forecast by the region’s auto manufacturer’s lobby.

Passenger vehicle registrations are seen falling 1% compared with 2018, the ACEA said in a statement Thursday during its annual general meeting. The group had previously predicted 1% growth. Sales in Europe and the European Free Trade Association are down 2% for the first five months of the year.

“Aside from the uncertainty due to Brexit and changing macroeconomic conditions, this represents a natural stabilization of the market,” ACEA Secretary General Erik Jonnaert said in the statement. “The pace of growth has been slowing down in recent years.”

Car registrations in Europe dropped sharply in September, when new emissions regulations came into effect, and have recovered only slowly. Sales in Europe and the European Free Trade Association barely reached prior year levels, with a drop of 0.04% in 2018.

The figures point to the possibility that car sales may have peaked as consumers increasingly choose to share cars or rent them on a short-term basis instead of buying or leasing. Europe’s emissions regulations have also forced manufacturers to shift their focus to electric cars in order to avoid billions in fines. Still, electric cars represent just a fraction of sales in Europe of internal combustion engine vehicles.

To contact the reporter on this story: Oliver Sachgau in Munich at osachgau@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net, Tara Patel, Andrew Noël

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