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Bloomberg
European carmakers had another difficult month in October with car registrations slumping once more, putting to the test a fourth-quarter bounce-back forecast by Volkswagen AG and Daimler AG.
Deliveries of new passenger cars slid 7.4 percent in the European Union and European Free Trade Association in October from a year earlier, compounding a 23 percent drop during September, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.
Some analysts are hopeful. EY consultancy expects things to get back to normal later in the year after emissions testing roiled sales. But Citigroup analyst Angus Tweedie sees downsides for BMW AG and Daimler. Tweedie’s note is titled “The Golden Age Ends With a Crash,†leaving little to interpretation.
“Heading into 2019 we see few remaining avenues of maneuver, and with volume growth slowing in, most markets believe the scale of pressures will become obvious,†he wrote. Carmaker challenges including a slowdown in China and trade tensions have been enough to rattle the German economy. The threat of US car tariffs on imports from the EU has subsided for now, after Bloomberg News reported the US will hold off on a decision.