EU car registrations slightly up, EV share down

According to the European Car Manufacturers Association (ACEA) data, EU car registrations increased by 4.3% in June and 4.7% for the first half of this year. The share of battery-electric vehicles decreased from 15.1% last year to 14.4% last month.

The June 2024 increase in car registrations was driven by gains in three out of the region’s four major markets: Italy (+15.1%), Germany (+6.1%), and Spain (+2.2%). In contrast, France saw a decline of 4.8% last month.

In the first six months of 2024, new car registrations increased by 4.5%, reaching nearly 5.7 million units. However, registration volumes remain relatively low (-18%) compared to pre-pandemic levels. The bloc’s largest markets all showed positive but modest performance, with Spain (+5.9%), Germany (+5.4%), Italy (+5.4%), and France (+2.8%) all recording growth.

By power source

In June 2024, battery-electric (BEV) car registrations declined by 1% to 156,408 units, with their total market share dropping to 14.4% from 15.1%. Despite significant growth in Belgium (+50.4%) and Italy (+117.4%), these gains could not offset double-digit declines in the other top markets: Germany (-18.1%), the Netherlands (-15%), and France (-10.3%).

As a result, a total of 712,637 new battery-electric cars were registered in the first half of the year. This marks a modest 1.3% increase from the previous year’s period and represents 12.5% of the market.

The NGO Transport & Environment (T&E) also commented on this: “Battery electric sales in the rest of the EU (excluding Germany) increased by 9.4% on average in the first half of the year, compared to the same period in 2023.”

And T&E continued: “The abrupt removal of purchase subsidies contributed to a 16.4% decrease in BEV sales in Germany in the first half of 2024. A stable and supportive regulatory environment is key to avoiding stagnation and locking in investment.”

T&E called on German lawmakers to follow Belgium’s company car policy, which sets attractive electric car depreciation rates and phases out combustion engine depreciation. As a result, BEV sales in Belgium increased by 48% in the first half of the year.

Lucien Mathieu, cars director at T&E, commented: “Germany is the sick man of Europe when it comes to electric cars. Meanwhile, markets with strong, predictable EV adoption incentives are reaping the rewards. Germany’s CDU lawmakers in Brussels should stop trying to weaken the EU’s 2035 target and promote electric vehicles instead.”

In the first half of 2024, EV sales grew in markets with supportive regulatory environments: in France, which has a social leasing scheme to provide cheap electric cars to low-income households, BEV sales increased by 14.9% in H1 2024; in Italy, BEV sales increased by 7.0% in the first half of the year, with a sales peak in June 2024 when new EV incentives were launched; in Belgium, the company car segment drove the BEV market with a 47.8% increase in the first half of the year, aided by the BEV premium for individual buyers in Flanders; in the UK, the ZEV mandate has driven the BEV market, with sales increasing by 9.2% in H1 2024.

Plug-in hybrid car registrations saw a substantial decline of 19.9% last month, with significant decreases in three of the largest markets: Belgium (-49.2%), France (-21.7%), and Germany (-3.4%). In June, plug-in hybrids accounted for 6.1% of the total car market, down from 7.9% last year, with 66,482 units sold.

Hybrid-electric vehicles were the only powertrain category to grow in June, with car registrations increasing by 26.4% to 321,959 units. All four of the largest markets for this segment recorded double-digit gains: France (+34.9%), Italy (+27.2%), Spain (+23%), and Germany (+16.5%). This growth pushed the hybrid-electric market share to 29.5%, up from 24.4% in June 2023 and steadily approaching the market share of standard petrol cars.

In June 2024, gasoline car sales remained relatively stable, decreasing by just 0.7%. Declines in key markets such as France (-20.2%) and Spain (-7.5%) were counterbalanced by growth in Germany (+12.1%) and Italy (+6.9%). As a result, gasoline cars now represent 34.4% of the market, down from 36.2% in June last year.

The diesel car market saw a similar situation, with a slight decline of 0.9%, resulting in a 12.7% market share last June. While Germany experienced a gain of 12.4%, decreases were observed in other major markets like Italy (-18.3%), France (-8.3%), and Spain (-2.1%).

EFTA and UK

When looking at the three EFTA countries (Iceland, Norway, Switzerland) and the UK, we see similar tendencies in general compared to the EU. Still, there is a reasonably big difference between the UK and EFTA.

In the UK, BEVs, PHEVs, and HEVs all increase, while petrol and diesel significantly regress. In the EFTA countries, the image is more diversified, with slower sales and a movement towards hybrid cars.

By brand

Looking at the different brands and brand groups, the Volkswagen Group stays comfortably on top, with an overall market share of 26.3% in June and 26% for the first six months (H1). Stellantis Group is still losing ground, with a 17.3% market share in June and 18% in H1 (down from 18.7% last year).

Renault Group is comfortably third, with an overall market share of 10.9% in H1 but 12.1% in June. Toyota Group has jumped over Hyundai Group and is now fourth, with a 7% market share in June and 7.8% in H1. That’s the same percentage as Hyundai Group, but Toyota sold some 2,200 cars more in H1, while Hyundai did the same in June. It’s a very tight battle here.

As usual, BMW Group comes sixth, with a 5.7% market share in June and 6.3% during H1. That’s a decline compared to last year due to a severe decline in sales for the Mini brand, eagerly awaiting new models. Mercedes has the seventh place, with a 4.7% market share in June and 5% in H1. Noticeable are the Smart sales in June, which decreased by -64.5%.

Further on, we see Ford (8th) continue to lose market share (2.9% in H1 2024, down from 3.6%), while Volvo (9th) and Tesla (10th) are not far behind anymore. The other Japanese brands are not performing poorly, while Chinese SAIC Motor is the most prominent Chinese group (13th place). That’s prone to change if the EU effectively claims the planned import tariffs in November.

Jaguar Land Rover Group remains in position (0.6% market share in June and H1) thanks to still-growing Land Rover sales, while Jaguar has lost 47% of its sales in June and one-third of all sales in the first six months of 2024. Of course, abandoning five of the six models currently for sale by the end of the year will still worsen this situation.