Higher demand in Italy and France helped new car registrations in Western Europe rise 2.3 per cent in February to nearly 1.03 million units, German auto industry association VDA said.

But demand remained weak in Germany, Britain and Spain, making for a patchy recovery in the sector, it added.
“Car sales in western Europe appear to be mostly robust,” it said, citing preliminary figures.Western European car registrations, which closely mirror sales, gained 2.7 per cent in the first two months of the year to almost 2.24 million vehicles, VDA said.
Italy was the most dynamic big car market, with registrations up 6 per cent to around 209,500 vehicles, given a range of new models and improved consumer sentiment, it said.
France reported a 0.6 per cent gain to over 160,500 cars, as foreign carmakers boosted their market share.
Germany, Europe’s biggest car market, saw registrations fall 1.9 per cent to just under 216,000, in part due to severe winter weather late in the month.
Subdued consumer sentiment in Britain and a 12 per cent drop in car sales to retail customers contributed to the 1.4 per cent decline in that market to around 76,000 cars, VDA said.
In contrast, retail sales in Spain were strong, but deals with rental fleet customers faltered, triggering a 2.3 per cent decline in registrations to almost 117,000.