New vehicle sales dropped year over year in Europe, China and Japan in February as the coronavirus spread and global economic conditions started to weaken, according to an analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

U.S. auto sales, meanwhile, rose during the month. But experts say March data could reflect a decline as states ramped up efforts to keep people at home.

US new vehicle sales rise YOY in February

Fears of spreading the virus did not appear to keep buyers away from U.S. dealerships in February as the country reported year-over-year gains.

The overall nonseasonally adjusted U.S. vehicle sales totaled 1.36 million units in February, up 8.4% from 1.25 million vehicles in the year-ago period, according to Bureau of Economic Analysis data.

"However, the real test will be this month, and whether March sales can maintain the same level of activity," Cox Automotive analysts said in a March 3 statement.

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In February, passenger car sales in the U.S. fell 4.8% to 347,514 units from 365,180 units in February 2019. Sales of trucks, minivans and SUVs increased 13.8% in February to 1.01 million units from 886,333 in the year-ago period.

Most automakers posted an increase in U.S. new vehicle sales for the month.

Japan-based Toyota Motor Corp. posted a 12.4% increase in U.S. sales at 194,152 vehicles, Automotive News reported. Honda Motor Co. Ltd. reported a 4.2% rise in U.S. sales for the month at 120,006 vehicles.

General Motors Co., Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV and Ford Motor Co. are among automakers that do not report monthly sales figures.

The average interest rates for new vehicles in February remained unchanged from the previous month, at 5.6%. "Interest rates on new cars are in a really stable place right now," said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights at Edmunds. Shoppers heading to dealerships in February are getting better interest rates than they would have a year ago, Caldwell added.

Europe auto sales drop YOY in February

Passenger car sales across Europe dropped for the second month in a row in February due to weakening global economic conditions and consumer uncertainty, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.

New car registrations, or sales, fell 7.2% in February to 1.07 million units, down from 1.15 million units in the year-ago period, association data for the EU, European Free Trade Association and the U.K. shows.

The European Free Trade Association includes Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.

Sales declined for major European markets in February on a year-over-year basis, with Germany posting a 10.8% decline and Italy registering an 8.8% decrease.

Among European Free Trade Association countries, Switzerland posted a 13.8% decline in sales, while sales in Norway decreased by 6.8% year over year.

Among automakers, Volkswagen AG's sales for the period declined by 4.4% to 269,242 units, as sales of its Volkswagen brand decreased by 9.7%.

French automaker Peugeot SA registered an 8.5% decrease in its sales to 181,439 units, as sales of its Peugeot brand dropped 4.9% year over year. Sales at Renault SA fell 14.3% to 104,259 as sales of the company's Renault brand fell 7.1% year over year.

Auto sales drop in Japan, China

New vehicle sales in Japan declined year over year in February as major domestic automakers reported declines in sales for the period.

Sales totaled 362,052 units during the month, down from 401,376 in the year-ago period, according to data from the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.

Toyota sold 115,982 vehicles during the month, down from 124,085 a year earlier. Honda Motor sold 58,685 units during the period, down from 62,776 in February 2019.

Elsewhere, vehicle sales in China declined 79.1% in February on a year-over-year basis to 310,000 vehicles, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers shows.

China's passenger car sales declined 81.7% year over year to 224,000 units in February.

According to the China Passenger Car Association sales in China declined due to travel restrictions and consumers staying indoors amid the coronavirus outbreak.