EU new car market expands 21% as EV demand grows

Brussels – The EU new car market grew by 21% year-on-year in August with 787,626 new units registered during the month.

The increase marks the 13th month of growth in the market, despite August typically being a slow month for car sales, said the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).

The region's three major markets of Germany, France and Italy posted double-digit gains during the month at 37.3%, 24.3%, and 11.9% respectively, said ACEA 20 Sept.

Over the first eight months of the year, new car demand rose just under 18% year-on-year to 7.1 million units.

Despite the year-to-date improvement, the market trails the pre-Covid-pandemic level of 9 million units sold in 2019, according to ACEA.

Notably, most markets experienced double-digit percentage gains in this eight-month period, including the four largest: Spain at 20.5%, Italy at 20.2%, France at 16.6%, and Germany at 16.5%.

In terms of engines, the market share of battery-electric cars exceeded 20% for the first time, up from 11.6% in August last year.

BEVs overtook diesel cars for the second time this year to become the third-most-popular choice.

Hybrid-electric cars held their position as buyers’ second choice, with a 24% market share.

Petrol cars remain the most popular choice, but their market share decreased from 38.7% in August last year to 32.7%.