Whatever recall and sales growth problems General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) may have in the United States, its money-losing European operations have finally started to turn around. Red ink in the region has totaled into the billions of dollars, with losses stretching back more than a decade. However, in March, GM’s sales rose 7.2% in Europe to 118,880. The largest U.S. car company is currently the fifth largest in the region, based on sales.

GM still has a very long way to go to catch market leader Volkswagen. Its sales rose 8.6% to 335,648. VW has a 23.2% share of sales in Europe, well above GM’s roughly 18% in the United States. GM also slightly trails Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), which had European sales of 123,554 in March. Total March sales among all brands in Europe were 1,448,148, up 10.6%, according to the ACEA

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GM still has to solve the problem that it does not own either the bottom of the market or the top in terms of car price. Renault, PSA and Fiat offer a number of low-priced cars. BMW and Daimler, parent of Mercedes, together sold more than 165,000 vehicles in Europe last month.

GM also has to battle with the same Japanese manufacturers in Europe that have bedeviled it in the United States. Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) sold 61,073 vehicles in Europe during March.

GM needs Europe more than it did just a few months ago. Recall problems in America are likely to affect sales. The overall growth of the American market has cooled from rapid expansion in 2012 and 2013. Some analysts blame this on the economy. Still others believe that Americans have replaced enough of the older cars they held during the recession that demand will fall. There also is a great deal of proof that younger Americans do not drive nearly as much as their parents do.

GM and virtually all other large global manufacturers have counted on the world’s largest car market — China — to be the primary engine of revenue and earnings in the future. GM and VW are the top two car companies in the People’s Republic. However, worsening air pollution has caused the government to curtail the use of vehicles in large cities. And the levels of pollution are getting worse.

If Europe is turning around for GM, it is happening just as the car company needs it most — at least in its recent history.

For more about GM’s recall problems, read here. And check out GM’s plan to shake up management.

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