SALES of light commercial vehicles across Western Europe are up by almost 5% for the year to date, latest figures show.

A total of five countries reported two-digit growth, the biggest being Sweden where sales for January to May increased by 18.4%, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).

The biggest drop was in the Netherlands, where sales fell by 6.9%.

Country		Jan-May 06		Jan-May 05		Variance
Austria		12,884		11,729		9.8%
Belgium		28,636		30,406		-5.8%
Denmark		25,266		21,887		15.4%
Finland		6,972		6,429		8.4%
France		190,246		184,224		3.3%
Germany		80,525		68,951		16.8%
Greece		10,637		9,989		6.5%
Ireland		25,593		23,143		10.6%
Italy*		99,098		89,989		10.1%
Luxembourg		1,303		1,373		-5.1%
Netherlands		31,276		33,578		-6.9%
Portugal		27,360		28,260		-3.2%
Spain		169,180		162,122		4.4%
Sweden		16,128		13,618		18.4%
UK		138,113		138,296		-0.1%
European Union		863,217		823,994		4.8%
Iceland		1,108		798		38.8%
Norway		15,829		13,821		14.5%
Switzerland		8,977		9,302		-3.5%
EFTA		25,914		23,921		8.3%
Western Europe		889,131		847,915		4.9%

* Delivery figures