Fiat April sales fall; European sales rise slightly
According to figures released this morning by the European Association of Automobile manufacturers, Fiat Group registrations in Western Europe (the European Union plus the European Free Trade countries) fell by 9.8% in April.
Of the various brands, “Other,” which includes Dodge, Ferrari and Maserati, was up 0.4% – the only “brand” to beat its year-ago numbers. After a small increase in March, Fiat brand was in the red again, posting a small 4.0% decline while the remaining brands dropped by double digits.
The Fiat Panda, Punto, Lancia Ypsilon and Fiat 500 were the top-selling vehicles in Italy last month. The new 500L came in at No. 10 followed by the Alfa Romeo Giulietta. April by-model figures for Europe will come out next week, but as of March, the Fiat brand was among Europe’s top ten though no Fiat models made it that high in the sales rankings.
The Italian market continues to contract and light vehicle registrations are falling to levels not seen in decades as the country continues to endure upheaval and a government that is in disarray. With France now falling into recession, there doesn’t look to be much relief in sight for automakers.
| FIAT SpA REGISTRATIONS: APRIL 2013 & YTD | ||||||
| Division | Apr-13 | Apr-12 | Change | YTD 2013 | YTD 2012 | Change |
| Fiat | 52,473 | 54,662 | -4.0% | 206,367 | 208,949 | -1.2% |
| Lancia/Chrysler | 7,620 | 9,371 | -18.7% | 26,980 | 36,626 | -26.3% |
| Alfa Romeo | 5,853 | 8,726 | -32.9% | 23,401 | 35,946 | -34.9% |
| Jeep | 1,716 | 2,294 | -25.2% | 7,828 | 9,795 | -20.1% |
| Others* | 519 | 517 | +0.4% | 1,545 | 1,966 | -21.4% |
| FIAT Group | 68,181 | 75,570 | -9.8% | 266,121 | 293,282 | -9.3% |
| *Includes Dodge, Ferrari and Maserati | ||||||
Overall European registrations rose by 1.8% to 1,081,307 as several countries reported increased sales compared to April 2012. Of the five key European markets Germany, Great Britain and Spain finished April with better numbers while France and Italy came up short. These five markets account for more than 70% of total European new vehicle deliveries.
| EUROPEAN MAJOR MARKET REGISTRATIONS: APRIL 2013 & YTD | ||||||
| Country | Apr-13 | Apr-12 | Change | YTD 2013 | YTD 2012 | Change |
| France | 157,749 | 166,552 | -5.3% | 591,631 | 674,382 | -12.3% |
| Germany | 284,444 | 274,066 | +3.8% | 958,401 | 1,047,702 | -8.5% |
| Italy | 116,209 | 130,321 | -10.8% | 471,750 | 538,153 | -12.3% |
| Spain | 62,317 | 56,250 | +10.8% | 243,042 | 260,368 | -6.7% |
| United Kingdom | 163,357 | 142,322 | +14.8% | 768,555 | 705,878 | +8.9% |
| Europe Total | 1,081,307 | 1,061,794 | +1.8 | 4,176,690 | 4,490,725 | -7.0 |
