Spain leads fall in European car sales

(AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL RIOPA)

Car sales in Europe's major economies slowed again last month, official figures have shown.

Passenger car sales in Spain dropped 27 percent year on year, said Spanish carmakers association ANFAC, while demand in Italy was also down by 14 percent.

Germany, the continent's largest car market, saw sales fall by 18 percent, although German automakers association VDA said October 4 that German exports were up slightly thanks to recovering demand in the US. US figures released October 1 showed that September sales were up by 29 percent after a considerable fall in August.

British sales were down 8.9 percent according to figures released October 6, although the British Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said that "demand for new cars has stablised."

French automakers' association the CCFA said that sales in France fell by 8.1 percent, reported AFP October 1.