Renault Dec sales jump 40% before incentives end

Renault SA, France's second-biggest carmaker, reported a 40 percent gain in December sales, helped by purchases in its home market before the government phases out consumer incentives.

Renault sold 206,702 cars and delivery trucks, compared with 147,796 a year earlier, it said in a statement today. The company, based in the Paris suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt, said full-year sales dropped 3.1 percent to 2.31 million vehicles.

The phasing out of the government incentives from Jan. 1 will contribute to a contraction of 8 percent to 10 percent in the European market in 2010, Renault said.

"With the end of full-effect government aid, the situation of the automotive industry will remain tense," Renault said.

French consumers flocked to showrooms in December, their last chance to secure the full 1,000 euro ($1,450) scrapping incentive available for new car purchases. The country's industrywide auto sales surged 43 percent last month, according to data from the French Car Manufacturers' Association.

Renault's December sales surged 50 percent in Europe and gained 37 percent across emerging markets including Romania, Russia and North Africa, helping to deliver a similar gain for the no-frills Logan models sold under the Dacia brand.

Renault, which ranks behind PSA Peugeot Citroen in France, said it aims to secure a further increase in its share of the global auto market this year, after its market share rose to 3.7 percent in 2009 from 3.6 percent a year earlier.