New car registrations in Germany rose 6% year-on-year in March and exports of cars made in Germany grew 14%, German automotive industry association VDA said on Thursday, according to Reuters.

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New car registrations totalled 356,000 vehicles, taking first quarter registrations in Europe’s largest economy to 795,100 units, up 5%, VDA said in a statement cited by the news agency.


VDA reportedly said its forecast of 3.35m new car registrations in 2006 might be exceeded.


Registrations rose in March despite severe winter weather and public-sector strikes that closed some registry offices. Calendar quirks helped boost the number as the long Easter weekend fell in March last year but is in April in 2006, the report noted.


Reuters said that German car exports increased to 395,200 units and VDA raised its forecast for full-year exports to over 3.8m units from its previous forecast of 3.75m. In 2005, Germany exported 3.79m cars.

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VDA reportedly said new registrations of trucks and buses rose 16% year-on-year in March to 29,000 units for a first-quarter increase of 16% to 71,800 vehicles.


Registrations of heavy trucks – defined as vehicles over six tonnes – rose 15% year-on-year in the first quarter and light truck registrations increased 18%.


According to the news agency, VDA said it would raise its full-year 2006 forecasts from its earlier estimates of 85,000 heavy trucks, on a par with 2005, and from “slightly above” last year’s 182,000 light trucks, respectively. It did not detail the forecast upgrade.