A total of 1,695,173 new commercial vehicles were registered in the EU in 2012, down by 12.4% on the 2011 total. Downturns were seen in all major markets, ranging from 5.7% and 7.0% for the UK and Germany respectively to the more severe drops of 10.3% for France, 25.9% for Spain and 31.7% for Italy.

The downturn was particularly pronounced for the month of December, with a total of 125,825 units registered, down by 23.4% and at the lowest level since October 2009.

Downturns in major markets ranged from 15.5% in the UK to 20.3% in Italy, 21.3% in France, 24.7% in Germany and 34.2% in Spain.

Looking at individual sectors, the “vans” segment for new light commercial vehicles up to 3.5T saw demand decline 13.3% for the whole of 2012, totalling 1,377,283 units. Results were negative across most countries, including the largest markets: 6.0% in Germany, 7.9% in the UK, 10.6% in France, 26.3% in Spain, 32.0% in Italy.

December’s van figures were particularly down, with 103,254 new vans registered, representing a fall of 24.3% compared to December 2011. All major markets were down, from 14.2% in the UK to 19.6% in Italy, 21.7% in France, 24.3% in Germany and 32.7% in Spain. Over twelve months, demand for new vans declined by 13.3% in the region,

For the “heavy trucks” segment of commercial vehicles over 16T (excluding buses and coaches), the 2012 decline was 9.4% in the region, with 214,086 new registrations. Results were diverse as the UK slipped by 0.4%, while France and Germany saw their markets contract by 8.5% and 9.6% respectively. Spain (-20.4%) and Italy (-28.5%) experienced a sharper drop.

The heavy trucks market also saw a 21.7% decline in December to 14,267 new trucks, with all significant markets facing a double-digit downturn, ranging from 16.4% in France to 20.2% in Italy, 21.2% in the UK, 27.1% in Germany and 39.6% in Spain.

The “trucks” segment of commercial vehicles over 3.5T (excluding buses and coaches) contracted 9.1% over 2012, to 285,809 new trucks. The UK was the only major market to expand (+3.5%), while downturn prevailed in France (7.5%), Germany (9.8%), Spain (21.3%) and Italy (29.4%).

December results were also negative, with the segment down 22.8% to 19,309 units. All significant markets contracted severely, from 17.1% in France to 22.3% in the UK, 22.8% in Italy, 28.2% in Germany, and 40.5% in Spain.