BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) – The European Union (EU) saw a significant drop in commercial vehicle registrations last year compared to the previous year. Truck sales declined by 6.2 percent to 307,460 units, according to figures released Thursday by industry association Acea. Van registrations fell by 8.8 percent to 1.447 million vehicles. In contrast, the bus segment experienced growth, with sales rising by 7.5 percent to 38,238 vehicles.

Bus registrations saw particularly strong increases in Germany (up 28 percent) and Poland (up 16.6 percent), while Italy and Spain recorded declines. All major markets experienced a downturn in truck sales, with Germany especially hard hit, down 12.2 percent, followed by France and Spain. For vans, France posted the steepest decline (minus 5.6 percent), followed by Germany and Italy. In contrast, Spain saw a robust increase of nearly twelve percent in this segment./jha/ajx/he