PARIS -- French new-car registrations fell by 10 percent in May, a smaller drop than in previous months this year as several brands made significant gains, including Hyundai, Fiat, Opel and Kia. Sales were down 23 percent in April.
However, the semiconductor shortage and supply chain issues continued to suppress deliveries, with stoppages at plants such as Renault’s Douai factory in northern France.
There were 126,813 passenger cars sold in May, according to the trade group PFA. However, the decline was less than it could have been, because there were 21 selling days in May 2022 compared with 19 in May 2021. Adjusted for an equal number of selling days, May sales were down by 19 percent.
Sales are down 17 percent through the first five months of the year, PFA said. That figure is 36 percent below 2019’s pre-coronavirus level.
Volume brands with double-digit sales increases in May were Hyundai, up 30 percent; Fiat (+20 percent); Opel (+19 percent) and Kia (+15 percent).