Surge in Car Sales Expected This Year

Jan 7 2012

The year 2012 promises to offer a new start for the motoring industry, with both cash and car credit sales rising significantly.

Worldwide car sales intelligence firm Polk predicts that global car sales in 2012 will be 6.7% higher than in 2011 – reaching a total of 77.7 million vehicles.  The biggest contributor to this figure will no doubt be China, where sales will increase by 16% – mainly due to increased demand for motor cars outside the country’s two largest cities, Beijing and Shanghai.

Sales of light duty vehicles in the United States are expected to grow at a moderate 7.3% this year, bringing the total to 13.7 million vehicles.  This is still far short of the 16 million vehicles that were sold on a yearly basis before the recession started to bite.

The strongest growth sector is expected to be the luxury car market, with a 14% increase in sales.

In the United States, Honda and Toyota are expected to experience the highest growth rates and to recapture some of their lost market share after the natural disasters in Thailand and Japan.

Volkswagen is also expected to increase its market share this year, bringing it close to 3% in the U.S. – mainly due to the launch of the Volkswagen Beetle.  Kia and Hyundai will also see an increase in sales, although not an increase in market share.

Unfortunately, in Europe and the UK sales are expected to remain flat or even drop further as governments introduce austerity measures.

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