New commercial vehicle registrations dropped by 11.8 per cent in March, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACE).
With the exception of Germany (+0.3 per cent), all other significant markets shrank, from -7.0 per cent in the UK to -11.2 per cent in France, -22.1 per cent in Spain and -45.4 per cent in Italy.
Over the first quarter of 2012, demand was down 9.6 per cent, compared to the same quarter a year earlier. Downturn prevailed across countries as new registrations fell by 1.0 per cent in Germany, 5.8 per cent in France, 8.9 per cent in the UK, 22.6 per cent in Spain and 36.1 per cent in Italy. In total, the EU* recorded 451,244 new commercial vehicles, including 21,913 new heavy trucks, which is 4.1 per cent less than in March last year.