French automakers provide less new cars in Jan

A Renault car is displayed outside a dealership in Marseille on Feb 1. The No 2 automaker in France saw its sales falling by 7.4 percent in January. [Photo / Reuters]

PARIS -- The French Car Sales Federation announced Friday car sales of 124,952 units in January across France, down by 15 percent from the same month previous year.

Year-on-year sales of the country's domestic brands shrunk by 12.9 percent after offering 68,448 units over the period while sales of foreign brands stood at 56,504 vehicles, down fell by 17.4 percent compared to last year's data.

France's largest car manufacturer PSA Peugeot Citroen suffered 16.7 percent loss from a year before after registering 37,934 new orders at the end of January, while Renault, France's No 2 auto maker, saw its sales falling by 7.4 percent.

In 2012, sales of new vehicles in France reported 15-year worst drop after shrinking by 13.9 percent due to uncertain economic growth and weakening purchasing power that forces consumers to clinch their belts.

To keep the sluggish sector afloat, the French government resorts to clean cars and is seeking to reinforce production of environmentally-friendly vehicles through an auto sector rescue package.