In total, 109,331 new vehicles were registered in the month.

Looking at the major markets, the UK was the only one to post growth (+4.2%) thanks to positive results in the van segment. France (-12.3%), Germany (-14.4%), Spain (-19.5%) and Italy (-31.3%) all faced a downturn. The

For the first two months of the year, overall registrations are down 11.9% at a total of 235,459 new registrations.

There was a similar picture for market performance, with an expansion of 4.9% in the UK market, while the French (-11.1%), German (-15.0%), Spanish (-17.6%) and Italian (-27.3%) contracted significantly.

For new light commercial vehicles up to 3.5t, February registrations decreased by 13.3%, amounting to 89,964 units. France (-12.0%), Germany (-16.4%), Spain (-18.3%) and Italy (-31.9%) recorded negative results, while demand was sustained in the UK (+11.8%).

From January to February, 193,085 new vans were registered in the EU, or 11.4% less than in the same period last year. The decline ranged from -10.7% in France to -15.1% in Germany, -18.3% in Spain and -28.7% in Italy. The UK recorded 11.9% more vans than in the first two months of 2012. 

Looking at the segment for new heavy commercial vehicles over 16t, this segment shrank by 12.4% in February, with a total of 13,320 new vehicles. All significant markets contracted, although at various degrees. Germany saw its demand fall by 8.9% and the UK by 11.0%, while the decrease was sharper in France (-18.4%), Italy (-23.8%) and Spain (-25.3%).

Two months into the year, major markets performed quite similarly with negative results ranging from -16.0% in Germany to -16.2% in Italy, -16.8% in France and -17.5% in both Spain and the UK. Overall, the region registered 28,851 new heavy trucks, or 15.7% less than in the same period a year earlier. 

For new commercial vehicles over 3.5t (excluding Buses & Coaches), the EU recorded 17,620 new trucks in February, down by 13.3% less than in February 2012. The number of new registrations was down 9.8% in Germany, 15.6% in the UK, 17.7% in France, 26.1% in Italy and 27.0% in Spain.

From January to February, 37,950 new trucks were registered, which represented a 15.4% decrease compared to the first two months of last year. Germany (-15.0%) remained the largest market with 10,435 new trucks, followed by France (6,738 units; -16.3%), the UK (4,754 units; -18.9%), Italy (2,136 units; -19.9%) and Spain (1,811 units; -17.7%).