The number of new cars licensed for the first time increased by 50.8 per cent to 14,037 in July compared with the same month last year.

The jump, detailed in figures released from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), reflects the new 142 number plates issued under the six- month registration system.

The figures show used imported cars licensed for the first time rose 6.4 per cent to 4,879 for the same period.

The number of new goods vehicles jumped by 65.7 per cent last month to 1,579 from 953 in July 2013.

In total, there were 76,317 new private cars licensed in the year to the end of July, a rise of 29.8 per cent compared to the same period in 2013.

The corresponding figure for used (imported) private cars was 32,480 and this was up 14.9 per cent on last year.

The total number of all new vehicles, which includes goods vehicles, licensed during July was 16,736 compared with 11,228 during the same month in 2013 - an increase of 49.1 per cent.

The highest number of new private cars licensed in July, classified by make, was Ford (1,596) followed by Volkswagen (1,590), Toyota (1,572) and Hyundai (1,465).

For the year to the end of July, Volkswagen ranked highest with 9,148 for new private cars followed by Toyota (8,347), Ford (7,729) and Hyundai (6,549).