Average retail prices for new cars in Ireland rose by 5.6 per cent over the 12 months to November, according to the latest European Index of New Car Prices.
Published on by eurocarprice.com along with PricewaterhouseCoopers, the figure compares to a rise of 5.9 per cent in the average retail price of new cars in Ireland in the year to October.
The movement in retail prices here was 1.1 per cent stronger than across Europe as a whole. Retail car prices in Western Europe rose by an average of 4.5 per cent in the year to November (4.3 per cent in the year to October).
New car retail prices in Ireland were 32 per cent higher than the average price of a new car in the euro currency zone. New car retail prices in the euro currency zone rose 4.6 per cent in the year to November (4.5 per cent in the year to October).
Of the 19 countries covered by the retail price index, Poland had the greatest increase in retail prices, which rose by 12 per cent in the 12 months to November. At the other end of the scale, retail prices in Finland fell by 1.8 per cent. eurocarprice.com also found that average pre-tax prices for vehicles in euro currency countries rose by 3.9 per cent in the 12 months to November - a slight strengthening of the price trend.
Pre-tax car prices in western Europe rose 1 per cent in the year to November compared to a fall of 0.1 per cent in the year to October. Relative to average car prices in the euro zone, Greece has the lowest pre-tax prices for cars, at 14 per cent lower than average. Switzerland, where pre-tax prices are 14 per cent higher than the euro zone, has the highest relative pre-tax prices.
In terms of segments, the average pre-tax prices for small car segment cars in Europe are now 1.5 per cent lower than a year ago, while prices for family segments recorded increases, along with executive, small SUV and cabriolet segments showing the greatest increases. Luxury segment prices continued to decline.