In March, vehicle registrations in Portugal fell by 56.57% with respect to March of 2019. In total, 12,399 cars were registered and 229,111 new cars were sold in the last twelve months, 14.95% less than the year before.
The breakdown of car sales figures for the month of March is:
- Commercial vehicles sold: 1,803, 50.62% less than in March of 2019.
- Passenger cars regitrations: 10,596, which represents a figure of 57.45% less than in March of 2019.
Portugal is the 38th-placed country in ranking of 137 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 22.25 cars per 1,000 residents, 1.2 of them in the last month, Portugal, occupies 27th 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 grown since 2010, as 226,962 were produced that year as have the number of registrations per thousand residents, which that year numbered 21.47.
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.