Netherlands car market in 2015 shows a robust recovery with December booming 91% thanks to sales anticipation for the green tax increase due on January 2016. Volkswagen defended the leadership from Peugeot assault.
Economic Environment
The Dutch economy is on track to record a robust expansion in 2015 and there are signs that the recovery is broadening despite the fact that GDP growth was subdued in Q2 and Q3. Lower production at the Groningen gas field due to safety concerns held back growth in these quarters. In fact, since May, the country has been a net importer of gas for the first time in several decades.
Nevertheless, the picture for Q4 is brighter: the PMI continued to point to expansionary conditions in the manufacturing sector, businesses grew more confident in November and consumer sentiment was strong in December, despite a moderation.
Moreover, Standard & Poor’s lifted the country’s credit rating in November and the Netherlands now has a top rating from all three major ratings agencies. In the political arena, Prime Minister Mark Rutte narrowly survived a no-confidence motion on 16 December over the management of a deal with a sentenced drug trafficker.
Market Outlook
Following three years of decline and a shy first half of the yer, the Dutch car market in 2015 scored a robust increase with a huge sales volume hit in the last month when sales flied up 91% from the correspondent period in the previous year, due to the tightening of the tax cuts for low emission vehicles, due on January 1, 2016.
December was the highest ever recorded in the country, at 69.159 registrations, mainly for the huge registrations to leasing companies catching to protect their stock from the tax increase.
Accordingly with data released by the Dutch Association of Car Manufacturers, the 2015 sales had been 452.207, up 16.7%. The market recovered from the negative peak of the 2014 (387.565) but is far from the record of the 2011 (558.224).
Perspectives for the 2016 are negative, in particular for the first half when market has to absorb the extra registrations quota applied during the last quarter 2015.
The Volkswagen leadership in the market is not under discussion and was confirmed by the 56.666 sales (+32.7%) with a share of 12.6%. Peugeot is second is dreaming to take the German rival bu in the 2015 was down around 7.000 units at 49.761 sales (+34.7%) gaining a bit over Volkswagen while a lot over the third, Renault (35.287 sales, +15.7%).
Behind arrived Opel with 25.474 sales (+8.7%), Ford (25.442, +22.4%) and Volvo (25.136, +14.2%).
Looking at the best-selling models, the 2015 leader was the Peugeot 308 with 28.950 units (+101%) followed by the Volkswagen Golf with 18.020 (+9.9%) and the Renault Clio with 17.010 (+15.8%).
To see full data on the best-selling car in the year, please see the dedicated report here.
Tables with sales figures
In the tables below we report sales for all Brands, top 10 Manufacturers Group and top 10 Models
