THE number of new car sales in Scotland is growing at twice the UK rate, new figures reveal.

The Scottish Motor Trade ­Association believes the growth is because the economic downturn had not hit the motor trade in Scotland as badly as it has done south of the Border.

Others have claimed a drive for greater fuel efficiency was among the reasons for the growth in new car sales across the board.

New car registrations in ­Scotland in October totalled 15,034, a 9.79% (1340) rise on October 2012. Meanwhile, there were 157,314 new cars sold last month in the whole of the UK, a 4.01% rise on October last year.

The Society of Motor ­Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said it expected UK registrations during 2013 to reach a six-year high.

The latest sales take the total number of new registrations in Scotland in the year to date to just over 180,000 - a 13.1% rise on January-October last year. Across the UK there was a 10.2% rise.

As a result, the SMMT said it was raising its forecast for the year to 2.25 million - well up on 2.07 million cars sold last year and the best year since 2007.

Douglas Robertson, SMTA chief ­executive, said: "After a strong September we had anticipated only a small rise in October and we believe the continued sizeable rise confirms that Scottish consumers believe we are experiencing an improvement in the economy.

"SMTA franchise dealers have a large range of low running cost new vehicles available and I believe the car-buying public, and also now businesses, are back in the market to take advantage of the availability of these models.

"In our opinion the recession never hit the motor trade in Scotland as badly as it did south of the Border so therefore it is easier for us to come out of it quicker.

"We are convinced as far as the motor trade is concerned we are coming out of the recession and have been for most of this year."

The SMMT said it had noticed a shift in models being bought away from family cars to smaller ­vehicles such as the Ford Fiesta, which remained the best-seller in the UK in the year to date with almost 105,000 models sold - well ahead of the Focus and Vauxhall Corsa. In Scotland the Corsa remained the biggest seller ahead of the Ford Fiesta.

There were 515 new Fiat 500s sold last month, making it the third biggest seller, and a rise of 68% on the previous year.

Dumfries and Galloway showed the biggest growth in appetite for new cars last month, showing a 18.3% increase in sales on last year, with 4111 sold, ahead of Tayside with a 16.63% rise and Grampian with a 15.11 surge.

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said: "We have now seen 20 consecutive months of growth. These sustained rises have been driven by robust private demand, a trend that has given us the confidence to raise our year-end forecast. Looking ahead, we anticipate more moderate growth as the market stabilises."

The industry body said buyers were increasingly looking for greater fuel efficiency, low emissions and running costs, while demand for larger vehicles was greatest in the multi-purpose category.

It also cited cheaper finance deals, with some as low as £99 per month as another reason for growing interest, while some purchases were likely being funded by payment protection insurance compensation.