European Car Sales Gain For 18th Consecutive Month

Start your engines...because double-digit car sales growth in Spain, Italy and Britain helped auto registrations rise in Europe for the 18th straight month. Europe's carmakers' association, ACEA, said Tuesday that car sales grew 7.3% annually in February to more than 920,000 units. Registrations rose by 26% in Spain, 13% in Italy and 12% in Britain, supporting smaller gains in the region's two biggest markets, Germany and France. Despite the European car market's steady recovery, registrations have not yet returned to pre-crisis levels. Premium carmakers BMW and Daimler posted double-digit sale gains and market share improvements.