Every category of commercial vehicles has faced negative results in the first half of 2025 in Europe. Vans and trucks suffered the most, but buses have remained relatively stable, thanks to their large share of electrification. However, the sector warns that the conditions are still not suitable for the mass adoption of electrified heavy commercial vehicles.

The numbers are sourced from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), which also represents the major truck manufacturers. It notes that registrations have significantly declined in key markets, amid an already low point in the market’s history and in the current economic context.

Vans are down in most big markets

For starters, the total number of new van registrations in the EU, EFTA, and the UK dropped to 912,596 units, down from 1,051,250 units in the first half of 2024. That represents a 13.2% drop, which is felt across most key markets, including Germany (-14.7%), France (-12%), and Italy (-11.7%).

However, not all markets saw a decrease in van registrations in H1 2025. Spain, for instance, registered 11.2% more light commercial vehicles than last year. And also in Belgium, the market grew by 9.5%.

Meanwhile, the electrification of the van segment is starting to take off. 9.5% of the total market share comes from electrically chargeable vehicles (ECV, meaning plug-in hybrid and fully-electric), with another 2.6% of the market share going to ‘regular’ hybrid vans. Last year, only 5.8% of the van market had a charging plug.

Significant drop in truck sales, and only marginal electrification

The new truck registrations saw an even worse result: 183,930 units in H1 2025, down from 216.173 in 2024 (-14.9%). Here, only Lithuania and Denmark managed to register more vehicles than in the previous year, while most countries experienced significant declines.

France registered 18.8% fewer heavy commercial vehicles than in the first half of 2024, and Germany’s result even dropped by 27.5%. In the medium truck segment, electrification is also starting to play its role, with around 15% of the total market share going to electrically chargeable vehicles.

However, with heavy trucks, a much larger segment, the piece of the pie remains marginal: only 2,410 vehicles out of a total market of over 150,000.

Buses remain relatively stable, and electrification grows significantly

The same cannot be said of buses. While the total European bus market slowed by 4.4% in the EU (18,123 registrations in H1 2025, compared to 18,964 units in H1 2024), the market grew by 4.1% in the EU, EFTA, and the UK (24,695 units vs. 23,723 units).

And electrification has played a significant role here. The ECV market share is nearly 25% and has grown by 38.1% compared to last year. Belgium stands out here, having registered 523 electrified buses and representing almost 10% of the total ECV bus market share in Europe.