Brazil Feb new vehicle sales down 4 pct vs Jan
SAO PAULO, Brazil, March 6 (Reuters) - New vehicle sales in Brazil fell in February from January, including in the hot "flex-fuel" category, but sales were still firm compared with February 2006, automakers group Anfavea said on Tuesday.
Total new light vehicle sales fell 4 percent to 146,760 units in February from the previous month, but sales rose 15 percent compared with the same month a year ago, the group said in its monthly report.
Total sales over the first two months of 2007 of 299,700 units were up nearly 15 percent from the first two months of 2006, helped by a stable economy and cheaper credit.
Production in February fell over 1 percent compared with January to 201,100 units and was down over 2 percent from a year ago, Anfavea said.
Export revenues for new vehicles rose 18 percent in February from the month earlier to $942.4 million and were up 2 percent from the same month a year ago.
The group said it expects production to rise about 3.8 percent in full-year 2007 and exports to remain stable.
FLEX-FUELS
Sales of flex-fuel cars, which can run on any mix of gasoline and ethanol, fell about 3 percent to 116,500 units from January, but the popular category still gained market share from its gasoline-only counterparts, Anfavea said.
In February of last year, 93,000 flex-fuel cars were sold.
As a percentage of total new light vehicle sales in Brazil, flex-fuels made up 83.5 percent of the market, up from 82.7 percent in January and up from 76.6 percent in 2006, the group said.
Growth in the sales of Brazil's flex-fuel car market is being watched by the sugar and ethanol sector, which is investing heavily in new mills to keep up with the quickly expanding demand for the cane-based biofuel.
