Registrations of all types of new commercial vehicles in Bulgaria decreased by an annual 5.4% to 2,089 in the first three months of 2022, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, ACEA, said on Thursday.
The number was also lower on a monthly comparison basis, with total registrations dropping to 774 in March against 825 in February, ACEA said in a statement, citing provisional data.
You can download the 2024 Automotive industry in Southeast Europe report here
In the January-March period, registrations of new light commercial vehicles of up to 3.5 tonnes were down 19.8% on the year, amounting to 1,165. At 412 in March, they were also 29.6% fewer than in the same month last year.
By contrast, registrations of new medium and heavy commercial vehicles of over 3.5 tonnes rose 16.6% year-on year to 877 in the first quarter. Their number surged 48.5% to 355 last month, compared to March 2021.
The biggest increase was in the medium and heavy buses and coaches segment, where new vehicle registrations numbered 7 in March compared to 1 in the same month last year. In the first quarter, they were 47 against just 4 in January-March of 2021.
In the EU, new commercial vehicle registrations continued to decline for the ninth month straight in March, dropping by about a quarter to 153,553 in March and by 18.1% to 411,097 in the first three months of the current year.
In the EU12, which comprises member states that have joined the EU since 2004, registrations declined by 14.7% on the year to 21,271 in March and were down 8.9% to 56,160 in the first quarter.