European car sales have climbed by 7.2% in the first three months of 2014, making it seven consecutive months of growth, according to the information provider JATO.

24 markets experienced year-on-year growth throughout the quarter with the UK displaying the strongest growth of the five largest European markets, gaining 13.7% in the first quarter.

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The other four markets, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, have also experienced quarterly and monthly growth year-on-year. France, after trailing the other European markets, grew by 8.5% year-on-year in March, compared to 5.4% in Germany.

The JATO figures also show that growth across Europe in March was up 9.3% year-on-year with 23 of the 30 European markets achieving an increase in volumes that month.

The UK was again the strongest performer of the big five, with an increase of 17.7%. However, this was considered to be an annual spike created by the registration plate change which occurs in March.

In the smaller markets, Greece and Croatia led the way in sales growth with 30.7% and 28.7% increases respectively in March.

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VW continued to be the top selling brand across Europe in March, up 4.7%, with the Golf being the top-selling model in Europe, over the Ford Fiesta.

Alternative data from the industry body European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) also shows seven months of successive growth but a higher rate of growth than JATO in March.

According to the ACEA, European markets showed a 10.6% growth in March and 8.4% in the first quarter 2013. The ACEA reported that 3,246,719 vehicles were registered in the first three months of the year in Europe.