Latest figures from the motor industry are a stark reminder that the eurozone crisis is far from over. Sales of passenger cars there plunged to a two-decade low last month and a new report warns that growth will not reappear for at least another six years. It's ugly, and clearly suppliers are feeling the pinch, but conditions are far better elsewhere and British parts manufacturers were smart enough to diversify years ago.
Clearly, the statistics confirm April's small increase in European car sales - the first since September 2011 - was flattered by a couple of extra working days, and certainly no indicator of any positive trend emerging. Last month, sales careered another 5.9 per cent lower to register the worst May since 1993. Just over five million cars have been sold in Europe so far this year, almost 7 per cent less than in the first five months of 2012.
Significant declines in France, Italy and Ireland are, perhaps, unsurprising. But the near 10 per cent slump in Germany last month is more of a worry. Without support in their historically resilient home market, BMW, Volkswagen and VW-owned Audi all sold fewer cars than they had the previous year. Of the major European marques, only Mercedes and owner Daimler increased sales in May.
With researchers at AlixPartners predicting sales in Western Europe will fall by another 1.2m in 2014, and fail to grow until at least the end of the decade, further heavy discounting and plant closures are inevitable. Good job, then, that the UK is still growing fast, and the US, too. In fact, the Americans have just had their best May in six years and sales are running at an annualised rate of over 15m, up 5 per cent on 2012. In China, sales are up 15 per cent this year.
