EU New Car Sales Rose in October With Help From Electric Vehicles

New car registrations in Europe rose in October, driven by demand in France, Italy and Spain, and a jump in fully-electric vehicle sales.

Registrations, which reflect sales, rose 15% to 855,484 in October compared with a year ago, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, known as ACEA, said Tuesday. France, Italy and Spain posted double-digit increases, while Germany registrations rose just 4.9%, reflecting the country’s slowing economy. New car sales rose 17% to about 8.8 million units for the period of January through October, the industry group said.