Car registrations continue to rise

The number of new private cars licensed in Ireland rose 30 per cent in January, new data from the Central Statistics Office showed today.

The figures may indicate some recovery in the motor industry, as the Government's scrappage scheme that is credited with boosting car sales was already in place in January 2010.

A total of 13,624 new private cars were licensed for the first time last month, compared with 10,469 in January 2010. The majority of buyers continued to opt for diesel vehicles, with 70.6 per cent of new private cars using the engines. Only 3,741, or 27.5 per cent, were petrol.

Toyota remained among the top choices, with 2,503 vehicles registered during the month, while Ford came in second with 1,642. Volkswagen and Renault followed, with 1,455 and 1,083 registrations respectively.

A total of 18,701 vehicles were licensed during the month, a rise of 19.1 per cent compared with 15,595 in January 2010. Of this figure, 15,176 were new, a 25.8 per cent rise year on year. Some 2,565 imported vehicles were registered during the period.

However, goods vehicles declined, with only 969 new vehicles registered, compared with 1,016 in the same month in 2010.

Figures released by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) earlier this month said new car sales for January were up 28.7 per cent on the same month last year, with 21,078 new cars registered.