French cars sales turn positive as foreign brands gain ground

Renaissance Global

02/02/2015 08:00

PARIS, Feb 2 (Reuters) - French car registrations rose 5.9 
percent in January, the country's main industry body said on 
Monday, halting a three-month decline as sales by foreign brands 
outperformed Renault  RENA.PA  and PSA Peugeot Citroen 
 PEUP.PA . 
    Registrations rose to 132,824 cars in January from 125,454 a 
year earlier, the Paris-based CCFA said, with Volkswagen 
 VOWG_p.DE , Toyota  7203.T  and Nissan  7201.T  all beating the 
market with bigger gains. 
    Renault's domestic sales fell 3.3 percent, according to the 
data, while Paris-based PSA Peugeot Citroen advanced 2.6 
percent. 
    Utility van registrations fell 8.8 percent last month, the 
CCFA said, paring the gain in overall light vehicle sales to 3.2 
percent. 
 
 (Reporting by Laurence Frost) 
 ((laurence.frost@thomsonreuters.com; +33 1 49 49 56 83; Reuters 
Messaging: laurence.frost.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) 
 
Keywords: EUROPE VEHICLEREGISTRATIONS/FRANCE