Last month the carmaker sold 47,449 units versus 55,098 units in January 2012. Market share was maintained at 3.9% although Nissan saw a market share of over 5% in Russia, Spain and the UK, where it has a strong manufacturing footprint.

Nissan also reported a rise in fiscal year-to-date sales for the UK, Austria, Slovakia, Denmark, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Iceland and Kazakstan. In the UK, monthly sales were up 23% compared to January 2012 and fiscal year-to-date sales were up 9% versus this time last year.

The brand saw continued demand for its crossover vehicles, with the Qashqai, Qashqai+2 and Nissan Juke accounting for nearly 60% of total January sales. The Nissan Note hatchback also recorded solid sales this month, up 43% compared to January 2012, with Nissan's van segment also performing well – sales of the NV200 and NV400 were both up compared to last year.

Nissan’s vice president for sales operations in Europe, Guillaume Cartier, said: ‘2013 will remain a challenging year for the entire automotive industry but consistent growth across Nissan’s high-performing product categories gives us the confidence we need to weather the economic storm.

‘Not only are we expanding our footprint across Europe with new dealerships, but we're investing heavily in our product range to bring new technologies, new innovations and accessible performance to our customers.’