The increase is attributable primarily to the extremely low base figures. The Hungarian vehicle market hit rock bottom in the second half of 2009 and in the first few months of this year. The positive change came about also on the back of company fleet renewals and expansions.

Monthly sales have been stable around 4,000 units per month over the past five months, which greatly lags behind the cc. 15,000 new cars that were registered every month before the onset of the global crisis.

In January-July, a total of 25,897 new passenger cars were registered in Hungary, which corresponds to a 40.4% year-on-year decline.

Volkswagen was market leader last month with 620 of its models sold on the Hungarian market. This gave VW a 14.2% market share. Ford, which was on top in terms of sales in June, slipped back to the fourth place (10.8%). Opel came in second and Skoda got the bronze medal, Datahouse figures showed on Monday.

In January-July, a total of 25,897 new passenger cars were registered in Hungary, which corresponds toa 40.4% year-on-year decline."

Source: Portfolio Online Financial Journal