Total European new car registrations rose 3.1% last month, mostly thanks to growth in the UK. According to latest figures released by the European manufacturers' association ACEA, the rise was caused 'mainly by the exceptional result in the UK' where registrations soared 25.4% in September.

So far this year the UK market has reported growth each month, bucking a downward trend across Europe. Total registrations in Europe fell 0.5% from January to September, but in the UK the market has grown by 9.2%. Registrations dropped by 1.4 per cent in Italy and 2.1 per cent in Germany over the same period.

Following 12 months of growth UK new car registrations are expected to ease in the final quarter of 2001. However total registrations, which stand at 1,962,700 units, are set to hit 2.3 million by the end of the year, and the market is still on course to beat the previous record of 2,300,944 units set in 1989.