In the period January-March, 103,146 new passenger cars were registered in Belgium. That is 13.5 percent less than in the first quarter of 2021, when more than 119,000 passenger cars were involved. This is apparent from the figures of the automobile federation Febiac and the Federal Public Service Mobility and Transport. Continuing chip shortages and uncertainty from the war in Ukraine are pushing sales lower.
In March, the decline was even sharper. 36,998 passenger cars rolled out of the showrooms, which represents a decrease of 17.7 percent.
“The new passenger car market is still under pressure due to difficulties in supplying electronic components, to which must now be added the uncertainties related to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict,” it said in a press release. There is talk of a “weak start to the 2022 financial year”. However, according to Febiac, this is not in line with the level of orders.
Furthermore, a difference between the private registrations (-26.6 percent in the first quarter) of new passenger cars and the registrations at companies and the self-employed (-1.9 percent) also emerges.
In the first quarter there was a decrease of 32.4 percent in light commercial vehicles. Heavy-duty vehicles over 16 tons drive against the tide, accounting for a 5.3 percent increase in new registrations. Motorcycle sales rose slightly in the first quarter (+0.8 percent).
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