BRUSSELS, Aug 17 (Reuters) - For the first time in 20 years, the sale of petrol-engined cars in Belgium overtook diesel ones in the first half of 2017, industry federation Febiac said on Thursday.
In the first six months of the year, 48.5 percent of cars sold in Belgium were powered by petrol engines, compared to a 46.5 percent market share for diesel engines, Febiac said, adding this was the first time it had happened since 1997.
Diesel cars have come under pressure by policy makers following revelations of cheating by manufacturers of diesel engines in emissions tests.
Sales of diesel cars in Germany fell 12.7 percent in July, a month when overall demand for cars rose 1.5 percent, German vehicle authority KBA said in early August.
In 2012 three in four cars registered on Belgian roads were diesel engined.
A total of 322,000 cars were sold in Belgium in the first half of 2017, with Volkswagen's Golf being the most popular car in the first half of 2017, Febiac said. (Reporting by Robert-Jan Bartunek, editing by David Evans)