EU new car registration up 17%

Brussels – The EU new car market grew 17.2% year-on-year during the month of April, with over 803,000 new units sold, according to recent data by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).

All major markets in the region reported solid last month, with Italy and France leading the way at 29% and 22% growth respectively.

Over the first four months of the year, the new car market grew by 17.8% to 3.5 million registered cars.

Despite the improvement, sales remain down by 22.8% compared to the same period in 2019, said ACEA, noting “the ongoing struggle” within the market.

All four major EU markets reported strong growth during the four-month period, led by Spain at 33.7%.

Italy, France and Germany posted year-on-year increases of 26.9%, 16.7%, and 7.9% respectively.

During April, the market share of battery electric cars saw a significant upturn, rising from 9.1% to 11.8%.

The segment saw a sharp 52% increase in sales to 94,561 units during the month.

According to ACEA, most EU markets recorded double- and triple-digit percentage gains in the segment, including a 35% growth in France and a 34% increase in Germany.

Hybrids vehicles now represent 24.8% of the EU new car market, while petrol cars continue to dominate with the largest share at 38.2%.

Sales for hybrid electric vehicles were up by 22.7% year-on-year to 199,407 units in April.

The growth was primarily due to double-digit increases in the EU’s four key markets.

New petrol car registrations in the EU had another strong month in April, with sales increasing by 17.3%, reaching 306,757 units.

The growth, said ACEA, was mainly driven by solid results in the four key EU markets, particularly Italy at just under 40% and France at 31%.

Since the beginning of the year, EU petrol sales have reached nearly 1.3 million units, a significant 18.3% increase from the same period in 2022.

The EU diesel car market remained flat during the month.