Financial Times FT.com

The German automotive association hinted that it could lift its forecast for Europe’s largest car market today after a state incentive plan to prompt consumers to trade in their old cars for a new model sparked a run on car dealers.

In demand: a bonus scheme to encourage motorists to scrap their old cars has boosted sales of new models

“The first reactions are much better than we have expected. We see a good chance that sales could be higher than originally thought,” said Kunibert Schmidt, managing director at the VDA, the German automotive association.