EU: Passenger car market contracts sharply in H1

ISTANBUL

The EU's passenger car market shrank 38.1% in the first half of 2020 compared to the same period of last year, an industry group said on Thursday.

Automobile registrations across the 27-member bloc stood at 4.28 million in the first six months of this year, down from 6.9 million in the first half of 2019, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) said in a report.

It highlighted that all 27 member countries saw drops -- between 20% and 55%.

Croatia posted the largest decrease by 54.4%, and Spain (50.9%) and Portugal (49.6%) followed it.

The EU is the main automotive export market for Turkey, where top international automakers -- Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Mercedes, Renault, and Toyota, among others -- are operating.

According to the Automotive Distributors' Association (ODD) data, Turkey's automobile market posted a 30.2% increase in car sales to 203,595 units in the first half.