Sales of new cars in February recorded a ninth consecutive month of decline in France, falling 13.1%, still hampered by the shortage of electronic chips, car manufacturers said on Tuesday.
Manufacturers registered 115,386 vehicles last February, compared to 126,380 in January 2021 before the chip shortage, and more than 160,000 in February of 2019 and 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Stellantis, Renault, Volkswagen, Toyota, Ford: all generalist manufacturers recorded a double-digit decline over one year.
Only Hyundai and Tesla are doing well with their hybrid and electric offerings.
"
The general brands are the most affected, because the smallest vehicles are those which collect the least electronic components
", analyzes François Roudier of the Automotive Platform (PFA), which represents the sector.
“
Purchasing power concerns are benefiting sales of alternative fuel models (bioethanol, LPG), while electrified engines (hybrid and electric) continue to progress to the detriment of gasoline and especially diesel
,” analyzes Stéphane. Knight of the AAAdata firm.
The second-hand market in decline
The second-hand market is also showing signs of running out of steam after a record year in 2021, falling 9.6% in February, with 448,345 transactions.
Again, it is the most recent models less than 5 years old that have fallen the most (-15%), due to a lack of recent opportunities on the market.
But models 10 years and older, which represent nearly half of second-hand sales, are also down (-4.7%), says AAAdata.
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Chip shipments are expected to accelerate in the second half of the year, according to most manufacturers, but the PFA expressed its "
very guarded optimism regarding current events in Ukraine
".
Contrary to its habits, the platform does not intend to make a forecast for the year, "
before having more elements of industrial and international context
".