German new car sales fell 2% last month to 225,000 vehicles amid consumer doubts following weak economic growth, Bloomberg News cited the German carmakers association as saying.


Car production fell 3% to 434,400 units and exports were unchanged at 308,900 vehicles, the Frankfurt-based VDA told the news agency.


Bloomberg News noted that German carmakers have been offering discounts to spur sales – Volkswagen AG is giving customers free air conditioning with its Golf model.


The VDA predicted in January that 2004 car sales would grow by 3% to 3.35 million vehicles, the report said.