Italy: Fiat new car sales down 36% in March

According to Khabarkhodro,Fiat Group’s sales in Italy fell 36 percent to 35,990 vehicles in March. Among its brands, Fiat fell 36 percent to 24,900, Lancia dropped 29 percent to 6,490, and Alfa Romeo tumbled 46 percent to 3,889.

Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne, who expects Italian car sales to fall to the lowest since 1985 this year, said last week that March was a “horrible” month for deliveries in the country.

Fiat SpA’s share of the total ended up being 26.03%, below its benchmark 30%, according to MF-Dow Jones calculations.

Italian new-vehicle registrations fell 27 percent last month as the recession and tough government reforms including higher taxes prompted consumers to postpone big purchases, with Fiat SpA describing the result for its home market as the worst showing for the month in 32 years.

Registrations in Europe’s third-biggest car market totaled 138,137 units against 188,495 for the same month last year, according to data published by the transport ministry Monday.