New-car prices rebound sharply since last May.

Automakers effectively raised prices over the last year as new-car sales momentum in western Europe improved.

The latest eurocarprice.com index of new-car prices shows list prices rose 1.8 percent in the last 12 months in 12 European countries that publish pre-tax prices.

Adjusted for specification changes, sales mix and currency fluctuations, the index sponsored by PwC Consulting showed prices effectively rose 2.3 percent. That's a sharp reversal from last May, when the adjusted index fell 2.5 percent from 12 months earlier.

"There is a clear upward trend in ...