EUROPEAN CAR MARKET SHRINKS IN MARCH AS EV SHARE DROPS

Registrations of new cars in Europe fell in March for the first time this year, with the share of electric cars falling below last year’s levels, according to official data released on Thursday.

Some 1.03 million new passenger cars were registered last month in the European Union, down 5.2 per cent from a year earlier, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) said in its monthly report.

For the first three months of the year, registrations are up 4.4 per cent from the year-ago period.

The strongest growth was in France and Italy, which saw registrations rise by 5.7 per cent, while they were up by 4.2 per cent in Germany and 3.1 per cent in Spain. —