UPDATE 1-European Sept truck sales down 27.7 pct -ACEA
* Commercial vehicle sales down 35.6 percent in first 9 mths
* Volvo Q3 operating loss 3.3 bln SEK, vs forecast 4.0 bln
(Adds details from statement, writes through)
PARIS, Oct 23 (Reuters) - European new commercial vehicle registrations fell 27.7 percent in September, showing their 17th consecutive monthly drop, Brussels-based industry association ACEA said on Friday. The truck sales figures, a good indicator of the state of the economy, contrasted sharply with 6.3 percent increase in passenger car sales for September ACEA published last week, as government-backed incentive schemes boosted demand. [ID:nLF404672]
Most commercial vehicles are not eligible for scrapping incentives.
In the first 9 months, new truck sales fell 35.6 percent to a total of 1,270,241 registrations, in Europe, which includes the 27 EU member states plus the European Free Trade Association countries but excludes Cyprus and Malta.
Truck sales are a good economic barometer, reflecting changes in international trade -- commercial vehicles carry 72.5 percent of all inland freight transported in Europe, according to ACEA.
The biggest drop in September came in the heavy truck segment, covering vehicles over 16 tonnes, where registrations plummeted 42.2 percent. Vans fared better, showing a 25.4 percent drop, while commercial vehicles weighing over 3.5 tonnes saw sales plunged 39.4 percent. Bus and coach registrations dropped 12.1 percent in September.
Volvo (VOLVb.ST), the world's second-biggest truck maker, posted a smaller than expected third-quarter operating loss, boosted by sweeping cost cuts, and stood by its outlook of sharp declines in its main markets on Friday morning, while MAN (MANG.DE) and Scania (SCVb.ST) are due to publish their results for the third quarter next week. [ID:nLN158444] (Reporting by Helen Massy-Beresford; Editing by Mike Nesbit)
