New car registrations in EU hike 4.3% in June

By Emir Yildirim

ISTANBUL (AA) – New car registrations in the European Union hiked 4.3% in June, making up 5.7 million units, according to data from European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association on Thursday.

The largest car markets in the EU displayed a positive course, as the number of new car registrations were up 15.1% in Italy, 6.1% in Germany, and 2.2% in Spain, though France saw a 4.8% decline.

The number of newly registered hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) reached over 321,900 in June, up 26.4%, with a market share of 29.5% year-on-year.

The increase in HEVs was attributed to the gains seen in France (34.9%), Italy (27.2%), Spain (23%), and Germany (16.5), the report revealed.

Meanwhile, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) made up 14.4% of the EU car market, down from last year’s share of 15.1%, accounting for a little over 156,400 units.

Although the market share of BEVs grew, especially in Belgium (50.4%) and in Italy (117.4%), the declines in Germany (minus 18.1%), the Netherlands (minus 15.5%), and France (minus 10.3%) outweighed the growth.

In total, over 712,600 new BEVs were registered in the first half of the year in the EU, accounting for 12.5% of the market, while posting an increase of 1.3% year-on-year.

As for plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs), the number of newly registered PHEVs declined 19.9% in June, accounting for 6.1% of the car market in the EU with a little over 66,400 units sold.

The decrease in the number of newly registered PHEVs was due to the large declines in the three biggest markets in the region, which are Belgium (minus 49.2%), France (minus 21.7%), and Germany (minus 3.4%), the report showed.

The market share of HEVs increased to 29.5% in June from 24.4% last year.

While the total share of newly registered electric cars, including HEVs, BEVs, and PHEVs, reached 50% in June, the total share of petrol and diesel vehicles fell from 49.6% to 47.1% in the same period.

Newly registered petrol car sales were stable, only down 0.7% in June, as the 20.2% decline in France and 7.5% in Spain were offset by the 12.1% growth in Germany and 6.9% in Italy.

Petrol cars made up 34.4% of the car market in the EU, down 1.8% year-on-year, while diesel cars accounted for 12.7%, posting a decline of 0.9% in the same period, the report said.