Car sales plummet 68% in April

IRELAND’S car market collapsed by almost 70% last month as those with money to buy a vehicle headed north or to Britain for cheaper deals.

According to figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), there were 5,558 new private cars licensed in April 2009, compared with 17,587 in April 2008, a decrease of 68.4%.

In contrast there were 6,032 secondhand private cars (ie imported used cars) licensed for the first time in April 2009, the highest since the CSO starting recording the statistics in 1973. A year earlier the figure buying the cars abroad was 5,477.