In March, vehicle registrations in Portugal fell by 41.53% with respect to March of 2008. In total, 16,305 cars were registered and 245,280 new cars were sold in the last twelve months, 12.27% less than the year before.
The breakdown of car sales figures for the month of March is:
- Commercial vehicles sold: 3,547, 39.25% less than in March of 2008.
- Passenger cars regitrations: 12,758, which represents a figure of 42.13% less than in March of 2008.
Portugal is the 34th-placed country in ranking of 135 countries based on number of vehicle registrations.
A very useful variable for estimating the level of economic wealth enjoyed by Portuguese residents, when compared to the other countries in the ranking, is the number of vehicles sold or registered per thousand residents in the last year. With annual sales of 23.22 cars per 1,000 residents, 1.54 of them in the last month, Portugal, occupies 31th place in the ranking.
As can be seen, the number of registrations per thousand residents has fallen in the last year. A drop in registrations generally indicates a fall in consumer confidence and, when it is sustained, a recession in the real economy.
Changes in Portuguese vehicle registration numbers are shown in the tables below. As several studies indicate, these changes are very much related to changes in GDP and, hence, to a country's economic situation. Sales have declined since 1999, as 396,592 were registered that year, as have the number of registrations per thousand residents, which that year numbered 38.93.
Here we show you the progression of vehicle registrations in Portugal. You can see car registrations in other countries in en vehicle registrations and see all the economic information about Portugal in en Portuguese economy.