SPAIN remains Europe's fastest recovering motorcycle market with the latest data released by ANESDOR (National Association of Companies in the Two-Wheeler Sector), the motorcycle industry trade association in Spain, showing that registrations were +16.1 percent in October (11,198 units) following +24.7 percent in September - which means that sales have now increased in Spain for 14 consecutive months.
For the year to date the market is +18.9 percent at 96,186 units (compared to being down 8.1 percent for the first 10 months of 2013).
In total PTW terms, Spain is +15.6 percent for the year to date (108,515 units), and was +12.8 percent in October compared to October 2013, at 12,609 units.
Jose Maria Riano, Secretary General of ANESDOR, welcomed the continued recovery in October, but points to the incentive deficit in government policy that still sees recovery in PTW sales lag behind that being seen in the automotive industry.
"The 16.1 percent growth seen in October is a good thing of course, but is 10 percentage points behind the growth being seen in new cars, because PTWs are not covered by the Spanish government's PIVE (new vehicle subsidy) or PIMA (scrappage) plans", says Riano.
"We believe this is discriminatory - only e-bikes are seeing any kind of support, but even the little help they are getting in PIMA3 is being dropped from the forthcoming PIMA4.
"It is difficult to understand why. The logic behind these plans applies equally to the entire automotive and motorcycle industry - replace older vehicles with new, safer and cleaner models and thereby generate a positive impact on the environment, on businesses, on employment and on state revenues.
"Furthermore, motorcycles are the most social of motorised transportation solutions in terms of urban mobility impacts and the least expensive to buy and maintain".
