LONDON - Extra working days boosted European car registrations in April, but Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW), whose car offerings include sedans, coupes and convertibles, was flavor of the month.

Registrations of BMW vehicles jumped 24.8%, in April, while Daimler climbed 18.0%, Volkswagen rose 12.0%, and Fiat registrations rose 7.9%, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) said Friday.

All major European car manufacturers benefited, with a 9.6% rise in car registrations in the European Union in April, from a year earlier, to 1,421,230 units. "Most European countries benefited from two to three additional working days, despite the U.S. financial crisis and further increases in fuel prices," the ACEA said in a press release.

The registration of 317,960 new cars in April was supported by an improving labor market, and recovering consumer confidence, the automobile association reported.

But what made BMW in particular so attractive? “The strong results have been a combination of two factors: new models, including the 1-Series Coupes and the X5, and their efficiency dynamics aimed at reducing fuel consumption and C02 emissions,” Michael Tyndall, an analyst with Nomura, told Forbes.com.

Shares in BMW rose 1.3%, or 5 euro cents (8 cents), to 37.03 euros ($57.58), on Friday afternoon in Frankfurt.

Equinet anlayst Tim Schuldt agreed BMW stood out from the crowd. “With Easter falling a month earlier than a year ago, the overall figures are relative, but this doesn’t really explain the outperformance of BMW," he said, adding that the Munich-based carmaker had been successful in marketing its efficiency dynamics and its new models.

The ACEA highlighted the German market as recovering from a weak performance in 2007, posting a 20.0% increase in car registrations, from April last year.

The British car market posted the highest growth of the year so far with a rise of 5,050 registered units in April. Italy remained the second-largest car market in Europe and its April results were in line with the monthly average of the last five years.

http://www.forbes.com/markets/2008/0...markets12.html