Opel posts 31 percent gain in German auto sales

The German car maker Opel, which was rocked this year by industrial uncertainty, said Tuesday that its German sales gained 31 percent in 2009 owing to a government cash-for-clunkers scrapping bonus. Opel said the sale of 339,000 vehicles was its best result since 2005 and gave it a domestic market share of 8.9 percent.
While its US parent company General Motors weighed selling the loss-making division, Opel benefited from state aid worth 2,500 euros (dollars) for drivers who junked their old cars and bought new ones. The scheme was a boost in particular to manufacturers of inexpensive autos. GM was set to sell Opel in September to the Canadian auto parts group Magna International and its Russian partner Sberbank but decided in the end to hang on to the German unit and its British sister brand Vauxhall.