European car sales continue recovery for 14th month with 16.5 pct Oct. bump

The European car market continued its recovery in October, recording a 6.5 percent increase in sales to 1,072,837 units.

It was the 14th straight month of growth and the European car maker's association on Tuesday said that most major markets experienced substantial growth. Spain grew by 26 percent, Britain by 14 percent and Italy, despite the continuing recession, by more than 9 percent. Powerhouse Germany saw a more modest increase of 3.7 percent. France alone recorded a slight decline of 3.8 percent.

Despite the recovery, auto sales still lag behind levels before the financial crisis prompted the sector's deepest contraction ever.

For the first 10 months of the year, the Brussels-based association reported sales up 6.1 percent to 10.6 million.