EU car sales expected to rise in 2021

By Yunus Girgin

ANKARA (AA) - After a year that saw the sharpest drop ever in EU car sales due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the recovery in the sales is forecast to start in 2021, the head of a trade group said on Wednesday.

Oliver Zipse, the president of European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA), said in a statement that this year will mark a first step on the path to recovery, with sales rising by about 10% compared to 2020.

Noting that the EU passenger car market declined by 23.7% to 9.9 million units in 2020, Zipse said: "This represents a drop of 3 million units compared to 2019. The fallout of COVID-19 is expected to persist into the first quarter of 2021, but the car market should pick up in the second half of the year as vaccination programs progress."

Zipse, who is also the CEO of BMW, stressed the market share of electrically-chargeable cars, however, grew strongly last year, with provisional 2020 figures showing an EU-wide market share of 10.5%, up from 3% in 2019.

With the right policy support, including a massive ramp-up of charging and refueling infrastructure for alternative fuels across all EU member states, this positive trend can continue, he said.

Zipse added that working hand in hand with EU policy makers to strengthen the competitiveness of Europe’s auto industry on the global stage is vital more than ever.