Annual western European car sales hit highest level since 2007

Car sales in western Europe rose 2.1 percent in December to take the total for the year to just under 14 million vehicles, the best result since 2007, according to industry data compiled by LMC Automotive. December sales increases in large markets Italy, France and Germany helped to offset a dip in sales in Britain, lifting western Europe monthly registrations to 1.085 million vehicles, LMC said on Thursday. December car registrations rose 3.7 percent in Germany, were up by 13.1 percent in Italy