New figures from the Central Statistics Office reveal that the number of new cars licensed last month fell by 11.2%. The CSO said that 7,095 new cars were licensed in May, down from 7,986 the same month last year.
However, today's figures show that the number of new goods vehicles licensed in May rose by 11.9% to 1,174.
In May, the total number of used cars licensed jumped by 35.6% to 4,601 from 3,394 the same time last year.
The CSO said that of the new cars licensed last month, 25.5% of petrol and 73.7% were diesel.
The most popular make of new car sold last month was Volkswagen, with 909 models sold. This was followed by Hyundai (787), Ford (644) and Toyota (635).
