According to the study, a total of 24 EU countries recorded a fall in new car prices, with the decline particularly marked in Slovakia (-17.4%), Bulgaria (-13.5%), Slovenia (-11.6%) and the Czech Republic (-9.0%), while Poland decreased by 5.6%.

Amongst the large markets, new car prices decreased most notably in the UK (-3.7%), while Germany, Spain and France experienced more moderate price reductions (-1.9%, -1.6% and -0.9% respectively).

The Commission says that the fall in real car prices across the EU is part of a trend that has been continuing for over a decade and indicates that competition between car manufacturers on the market for new cars is working.

The new car price report also shows a narrowing in price differentials for new cars in EU in 2010, which is a "positive indicator of cross-border competition," according to the Commission. However it says that the differences remain big in some cases, pointing to large savings for consumers shopping across borders.