Bentley Motors

One of Britain's few economic bright spots - a 13-month run of increased car sales - may actually say more about the country's ills than it does about its growth prospects.Much of the rise has been caused by a banking scandal, high fuel prices, erosion of savings and widening income inequality."A perfect storm of factors have come together to create a real buyers' market at the moment," said Keith Lewis, a spokesman for the British car industry body, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).First, the numbers. In the 12 months ending in March, car registrations in Britain rose 7.2 percent compared with the same period a year earlier.During that period - or an approximation of it, given different reporting schedules - there has been barely any economic growth and unemployment has averaged 7.9 percent.By contrast, new car registrations in Germany - Europe's biggest auto market - fell 13 percent in the first three months of 2013, and sales in France fell 15 percent.So what's ...

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