Czech new car sales jump as economy speeds ahead

...42,929 units, the Car Importers' Association (SDA) said on Thursday.

The growth comes amid strong economic expansion, 6.1 percent last year, and rising disposable income in the central European country, the SDA said.

"Earlier, households were buying other things they needed, and cars were not a subject of standard renewal," SDA Secretary Pavel Tunkl said.

"It seems that the economic situation is now improving so families are buying replacements," he told a news conference.

The SDA forecast full-year passenger and light utility car sales growth of over 10 percent.

A mild winter may have also prompted some Czechs to buy cars earlier than they otherwise would, the SDA said, so only the following quarters will show if the trend has truly shifted.

In the first quarter, passenger car sales rose 9.2 percent to 30,105 cars while utility vehicle sales jumped 22.8 percent to 12,824.

Many passenger cars are sold with minor modifications -- mostly just fitted with bars separating the trunk from the cabin -- which allow entrepreneurs to list them as utility vehicles and get a tax break.

Domestic maker Skoda Auto led the sales among both passenger and utility cars, although its market share continued to decline to 38.5 percent in the passenger segment and 22.3 percent in the utility segment.

Last year, passenger and light utility car sales rose 4.24 percent.