U.S. car market could grow by 11 percent in 2011, says German association VDA

German automotive association VDA recently said at the Detroit Auto Show that the U.S. car market could increase by 11 percent to 12.8 million car sales in 2011 and that it expected 2011 to be a good year for German car manufacturers, including in the U.S. The VDA added that if the basic conditions are good, German automakers can expect to sell one million cars in the U.S. in 2011.

German carmakers, in 2010, sold 880,700 cars on the U.S. market, an increase of 15 percent compared with the year-earlier period.

The U.S. market grew by 11 percent to 11.6 million vehicles in 2010, signaling recovery from an immense drop in demand during the global economic crisis.

Luxury cars made by Audi, BMW AG and Mercedes AG are still in demand. German carmakers upped their market share by 0.3 percentage points to 7.6 percent.