The European figures for the first quarter of 2023, telling the stories or part-stories that will set the tone or provide the challenges for the rest of the year.
What's significant? Underlining the easing of the chip supply crisis, car registrations are up 17.9% year on year. That compares to the UK market's rise of 18.4% but is dwarfed by the rises in Spain (+44.5%) and Italy (+26.2%).
Electric vehicle registrations continue to be the bright spot of the industry in terms of growth (if not perhaps profits), although there are clouds on the horizon.
