Registrations of new cars in France made by PSA Peugeot-Citroën fell sharply in August, with the French auto maker losing market share to crosstown rival Renault SA as their home market contracted sharply after showing signs of stabilizing in July, reports The Wall Street Journal.
August is traditionally a quiet month for car sales across Europe, particularly in France, where many dealerships close for summer vacation. But the latest auto data underline the sluggishness of the French economy, with unemployment rising and consumers preparing for tax increases this fall.
Registrations of new cars—a proxy for sales—hit a new low in August, falling 11% compared with the same month of 2012, according to data released Monday from the French automobile manufacturers’ association.
Adjusted to take into account one less working day last month compared with August 2012, registrations fell 6.7%. Over the first eight months of this year, the French market contracted by 9.8% to a level not seen since the late 1990s.
Peugeot, France’s largest producer by volume and Europe’s second biggest after Volkswagen AG, continues to bear the brunt of the weak demand in Europe’s third-biggest auto market after Germany and the U.K. New registrations for Peugeot in France were down 17% year-on-year in August.
Over the first eight months, Peugeot’s sales were down 13%, worse than the overall market’s 9.8% decline, losing a percentage-point share of its home market despite the arrival in showrooms of two new models, the Peugeot 208 subcompact and the Peugeot 2008, a mini-SUV. A new version of its Peugeot 308 hatchback is due to hit showrooms later this month.
Peugeot is in the middle of a major restructuring program, involving the loss of thousands of jobs and the closure due next month of production lines at a factory near Paris, as it tries to stanch losses.
Read more of this report from The Wall Street Journal.