French car sales rose for a second consecutive month in October, with PSA Peugeot Citroen and Renault reclaiming some lost ground from Volkswagen, according to industry data published Monday.

Registrations advanced 2.6 percent to 166,515 cars last month, building on September's 3.6 percent year-on-year gain, France's CCFA auto industry association said in a statement.

Paris-based Peugeot posted a 4.1 percent sales gain helped by recent models such as the 308 compact and 2008 mini-SUV. Renault sales rose 5.8 percent.

The association improved its French market outlook, predicting a 6 percent decline for 2013 - smaller than the 8 percent contraction previously forecast.

Over the past two years, Renault and Peugeot have seen their combined domestic market share decline 2.6 percentage points to 53.6 percent for January-October, as rivals such as Volkswagen have grabbed a bigger slice of demand.