According to the report from the industry group Plateforme Automobile, French car sales slumped 35% in July as a semiconductor shortage curbed inventory in one of Europe’s biggest markets. France recorded 115,713 passenger-car registrations for the month.
For the first seven months of the year, registrations rose 16% over the same period in 2020, when sales were depressed during the first wave of the pandemic.
The sluggish result is a further indication that Europe’s auto-industry recovery is slower than the rebound seen in the U.S. and China. The latest data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association showed almost 2 million fewer cars were sold in the region during the first half compared with two years ago.