The German car market was up 7% in February, a result which the VDA said leaves the market on track to turn out at around 3m units in 2015.

The VDA said that car sales in February were up 7% to 223,300 units, leaving the first two months of the year 5% up to 434,600 units.

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The analysts at IHS Automotive said that the German car market is on target to record a slightly highter uplift in 2015 “thanks to the ongoing robust nature of the German manufacturing economy, although this could be hit by the geopolitical and economic volatility in the Middle East and Russia”.

IHS also said that the market in Germany last month saw a big uplift for the sport utility vehicle (SUV) market of 21.4% while compact hatchbacks also experienced a strong rise of 15.2%.

IHS noted that the Volkwagen brand enjoyed another strong month in February with sales rising by 18.5% year-on-year to 50,143 units as a result of the unusually low base comparison in February last year and by “some strong offers and incentives on some vehicles”. Audi also had a string sales month to take second position from Mercedes-Benz.

IHS also noted that prospects for car sales may be buoyed by wage settlements that have been agreed between Germany’s largest industrial union IG Metall and employers in southwest Germany, including Porsche and Mercedes-Benz. That, it said, “may give workers further confidence to go out and make big ticket purchases, including new cars”.

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The German car market has also been fuelled partially by the oil-price declines that are boosting consumer spending and the latest (February) consumer confidence data from the GfK shows that the willingness to make major purchases has edged up.

Some market stimulus is also expected from key new model launches such as the new VW Passat and Opel Corsa.