European car registrations put in their strongest H1 performance since 2007 but there are signs of a slowdown in growth.

European car registrations experienced the highest H1 total since 2007, with a total of 8.4m registrations.

Latest JATO figures show registrations totalled 1.5 million units in June 2017, an increase of 1.9% when compared to the same month last year, and the highest June total for a decade – the total was only 22,000 units behind June 2007’s record figure.

The growth helped drive H1 registrations to 8.4 million units – up 4.3% – with growth led by four of Europe’s five largest markets – Germany, France, Italy and Spain – with their collective H1 registrations up by 4.7% to 4.7 million units. In contrast, the UK posted a 1.3% decline in registrations for H1 2017 compared to the same period in 2016, with the fall attributed to Brexit uncertainty.

However, the figures show growth in the region is slowing following the exceptional performance of recent years; in comparison, 2016 saw growth of 9.1% on the previous year.

The Golf remained the highest-selling car but saw its volume drop by 11.6% for H1 2017, followed by the Clio (up 6.3% for H1), Polo (up 3.0%), Fiesta (down 1.6%) and Corsa (down 5.9%).