The number of new cars sold across Europe in the first month of the new decade was up markedly, newly-released figures show.

According to the latest statistics from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, new car sales in January were up by 12.9 per cent in comparison to the same month of 2009.

In total, some 1,058,868 new cars were purchased and registered across the 28 nations covered by the industry body.

Notably, such an improvement in sales was driven largely by strong demand in Britain, France, Italy and Spain, where new registrations were seen to be particularly popular.

These nations helped to offset the performance seen in the European Union’s largest single market, Germany, where sales were seen to be down by 4.3 per cent following the end of its government’s purchasing incentives scheme.

The latest figures also show that registrations of new Volkswagen cars were up by 11.3 per cent over the period, while Peugeot, Citroen and Ford also enjoyed a strong month.

Earlier this month, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders reported that the British government’s car scrappage scheme is still popular with consumers.

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