Italy’s Car Dealer Base Shrinks by One-Third

The number of auto dealers in Italy has dropped to 2,010 from 2,950 in 2007, according to Reuters, which cites Treviso, Italy-based auto retailing researcher Quintegia.

The group predicts that Italy will have only 1,500 car outlets by 2017 because of the country's plunging auto sales. Registrations of new vehicles plunged 20% to 1.4 million units in 2012, which marked the fifth straight annual decline in demand.