Investment immigration to Portugal focus on Portuguese economy news: Data released by the Portuguese Automobile Association (ACAP) on Tuesday shows that Portugal's car sales have grown for 18 consecutive months. From January to November this year, car sales reached 156,351 units, an increase of 37.3% compared to the same period in 2013. In November alone, 14,674 units were sold, an increase of 33.7% over the same month last year. The largest market shares for light passenger and light commercial vehicles in Portugal are held by Renault (13.15%), Peugeot (10.72%), and Volkswagen (9.8%), respectively. BMW and Mercedes-Benz saw the fastest growth in November, reaching as high as 40%.
In addition, the data also shows that light passenger vehicles account for the largest market share. In the first 11 months, a total of 130,887 units were sold, a year-on-year increase of 34.5% compared to 2013. In November alone, 11,686 light passenger vehicles were sold, an increase of 32.6% compared to the same month last year.
Light commercial vehicles also saw a year-on-year increase of 55% over the past 11 months, with a total of 22,525 units sold. In November, sales reached 2,544 units, a year-on-year increase of 32.6%.
As for heavy passenger vehicles and trucks, they also grew by 44.4%, with a total of 2,939 units sold in the first 11 months. In November alone, sales reached 444 units, an increase of 79% compared to November of last year.
In the mid-1990s, the income of Portuguese residents grew significantly, and with the influx of substantial EU aid funds, the living standards of the people improved markedly, leading to an expansion of the Portuguese automotive market. After entering the 2000s, sales tended to stabilize. In 2006, the total number of new car registrations in Portugal was approximately 260,000, most of which were small family cars. Today, the Portuguese automotive market is basically saturated, with a vehicle ownership rate of 374 vehicles per 1,000 people, slightly lower than the EU average of 409. The average age of vehicles is 4 to 5 years. Like other European countries, the Portuguese automotive market is largely monopolized by European brands, with German Volkswagen, French Peugeot and Citroën, and Italian Fiat holding dominant positions. American and Japanese brand vehicles account for less than 10% of the market share.
