- Reuters
- , Tuesday April 1 2008
(adds information from news conferences)
By Marcel Michelson
PARIS, April 1 (Reuters) - New car registrations in France
rose 3 percent on an underlying basis in the first quarter while
overall sales were distorted by a new system of eco taxes, an
industry body said on Tuesday.
For March alone, the market for passenger cars was up 9.5
percent on a same number of working days basis but new
registrations of 188,943 were down 0.5 percent from a year ago.
In the first three months of the year, overall sales in
France rose 1.3 percent to 526,185 vehicles without adjusting
for the number of working days.
"The year is shaping up as close to two good years," said
Xavier Fels, president of the CCFA French carmakers'
association, as the first quarter of 2008 was below the same
quarter in 2005 and 2006 but ahead of 2007.
He declined to make a forecast but said the impact on sales
from a new system of taxes and bonuses for cars depending on
their CO2 emission would continue through the rest of the year.
As the market is skewed towards smaller cars, this may
undermine the profit margins of the French makers even though
they have a competitive line-up in relatively fuel efficient
vehicles and could benefit from a boost in volumes.
France started a system of premiums for cars with CO2
emissions below 130 grammes per kilometre in December 2007 and
added penalties for cars emitting more than 161 grammes of CO2
per km in January. The premiums or penalties are progressive.
This led to a big boost in sales of low C02 cars in December
while sales of relatively polluting cars fell in January.
In 2007, cars with emissions below 130 grammes had a market
share of 30.2 percent and those of more than 161 grammes 24.4
percent. In March 2008, this was 40.7 percent and 15.2 percent
respectively.
Over the first two months of 2008, the sales of four-by-four
cars such as Rav4, Qashqai or Tiguan fell by 33.2 percent and
the market for big SUVs such as the Renault Espace, Peugot 807
or Citroen C8 dropped 43.6 percent.
The sector for small breaks, like the Logan MPV, was up 60.3
percent.
FRENCH MAKERS BOOST MARKET SHARE
The French carmaker recaptured market share and held a
combined 54.5 percent in the first quarter versus 53.1 percent a
year ago.
Renault group car sales rose 13 percent last month for a
quarterly gain of 9.9 percent. PSA Peugeot group saw new
registrations fall 8.8 percent in March but managed a 2.6
percent gain for the quarter, the association said.
A spokesman for PSA said that the new eco tax had boosted
demand for certain types of engine to beyond the capacity of its
two engine factories and it could not meet demand.
German carmakers BMW and Daimler saw sales rise 19 percent
and 2.9 percent respectively last month in the French market,
though the Volkswagen and Audi brands experienced drops of over
10 percent.
Fiat and Ford meanwhile posted gains of 10 percent and 12
percent respectively last month, while Hyundai saw sales plunge
43 percent.
(Additional reporting by Dominique Vidalon and James Regan;
editing by Elaine Hardcastle)