German car sales to grow by 3 percent in 2006

German car sales are expected to grow by 3 percent to 3.4 million vehicles this year and remain at the same level in 2007, the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) said on Tuesday.

The number of new car registrations jumped by 18 percent to 326,000 vehicles in November, which put total sales in the 11 months to November at 3.165 million vehicles, representing 3-percent year-on-year growth, the VDA said.

The trend put the industry on target for a 3-percent rise in sales to 3.4 million vehicles for the whole of 2006, the VDA added.

VDA President Bernd Gottschalk said they were also expecting favourable Christmas business in December.

Gottschalk attributed the year-end increase to four factors -- the launching of new models, strong consumer demand, marketing incentives and the upcoming increase in value-added tax (VAT) next year.

Source: Xinhua