The number of new cars licensed for the first time in July rose by 2.8 per cent year on year, reversing the downward trend seen in recent months.
According to the Central Statistics Office, 16,175 new private cars were registered during the month, compared with 15,738 in the same month a year earlier.
A new tax regime for vehicles was introduced at the start of July, which reduced car tax for some vehicles and increased it for those with higher CO2 emissions. This was widely considered a factor in falling car sales in the first six months of the year as motorists held off buying new vehicles to take advantage of lower prices when the new system was fully implemented.
Of the 13,576 new cars for which CO2 emissions ratings were available, 48 per cent were in Band B, which costs €150 per year, with 27 per cent in band C, 11 per cent falling into Band A and the remainder in Bands D and E.
There was a 15 per cent fall in the number of new cars registered in the first seven months of the year, with 130,744 new private cars licensed in 2008.
Goods vehicles fell 44.1 per cent to 2,377 in July, while the total number of all vehicles licensed was up 1.8 per cent, 30,245 compared with 29,721 a year earlier.
The number of second hand private cars licensed for the first time in July increased 36 per cent compared to last year.
