UNITED STATES May 18 2017 1:03 PM
NEW YORK (Scrap Register): European auto demand so far this year has been supportive for platinum, said Commerzbank.
Analysts pointed out that the European Union is the world’s third-largest car market. It is especially important to platinum, since the diesel-powered vehicles popular on the continent require platinum for catalysts, whereas gasoline-powered ones can use palladium.
Data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association show that new car registrations fell by 6.6% year-on-year last month.
“However, this was mainly due to a calendar effect since Easter was in April this year (but in March in 2016),” Commerzbank added.
“Despite the decline in April, 4.7% more new cars were registered in the EU in the first four months of the year. This indicates that demand for platinum remains solid,” Commerzbank noted.
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