The firm’s data shows that 25 of the 30 markets surveyed posted increases last month compared with February 2013 volumes, with the exception of Belgium, France, Norway, Poland and Switzerland.

The German market emerged as one of the strongest growth areas in Europe in February, with sales up by 8,666 units compared to February 2013. Germany also recorded the largest absolute growth in year-to-date sales volumes with 22,572 more new cars being sold or registered in Germany in the first two months of 2014 than in the same period in 2013.

Italy, Spain and Great Britain also recorded strong growth in February. Spain recorded an increase of 11,469 units on February 2013, whilst Italy was up 9,288 units, and all three reported impressive year-to-date growth compared to the first two months of 2013.

All of the top 10 brands have posted increases year-to-date, with Audi posting the largest increase within the top 10 of 9.2%. Eight of the top 10 brands also posted increases for the month compared to February 2013, with Opel/Vauxhall recording the largest percentage increase of 14.6% in the monthly top 10.

Strong growth was also recorded outside the top 10 brands; seven of the top 20 brands posted a year-on-year increase of more than 10%. In particular, Skoda, Suzuki and Dacia led the growth, with each brand recording more than a 20% increase in sales compared to February 2013.

This strong growth isn’t limited to just February, however. So far, in 2014, 18 of the top 20 brands have achieved a year-to-date increase, with six posting year-to-date growth of more than 10%. Suzuki, Mazda and Dacia are all up by more than 20% on 2013 year-to-date volumes.

Volkswagen continued to enjoy success with their popular Golf and Polo models, finishing first and third respectively in February’s best-selling models in Europe table. Both models increased volumes in February and remain up on 2013 year-to-date volumes. Despite a fall in volumes for both the month and year-to-date, the Renault Clio was the second best-selling model in February.

Also achieving significant increases for both the month and year-to-date were the Ford Fiesta and Skoda Octavia. The fourth best-selling model in Europe in February, the Ford Fiesta, increased monthly volumes by 19.3% and year-to- date volumes by 13.2% year-on-year.

The seventh best-selling model in Europe in February was the Skoda Octavia, which recorded the largest percentage increase in the top 10 for both the month and year-to-date. Sales were up for the recently updated model by 39.3% in February and 35.4% year-to-date compared with 2013 volumes.

Gareth Hession, vice president of research at JATO Dynamics, commented: ‘The latest volumes offer further reassurance of sustained improvement within the European new car market. We’ve seen overall volumes increase for six months consecutively, with the majority of markets posting increased volumes for both the month and year-to-date. Manufacturers have brought some really innovative products to market and they are now beginning to reap the rewards of investing in new technology.’