The car market is at half-mast but hybrid sales are booming. While the European market in general fell 3% year-on-year, with sharp drops in Italy and Germany in particular, sales of hybrid models continued to increase in Europe in May, while the rest of the engines decreased, according to figures published on Thursday by ACEA. , the association of European manufacturers.
These hybrid cars (gasoline and diesel, which cannot be plugged into a terminal) reached 29.9% of sales in May (+16.2%), with good sales in France and Spain, in particular. On the other hand, sales of plug-in hybrid cars (that can be plugged in) continue to fall (-14.7%) and now represent only 6.5% of the market.
With the exception of hybrids, registrations of both thermal and electric cars are falling. Gasoline (-5.6% year-on-year) and diesel (-11.4%) cars today represent less than half of sales on the continent, according to these monthly statistics published by the Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).
Electric cars are in trouble
Regarding electric cars, stagnation was confirmed in May with a decrease of 12% in one year. Its market share stagnated at 12.5% in May, while it had reached 14.6% in all of 2023. In the main markets, electric vehicle sales only increased in France and Belgium, and continued to fall in Germany , where purchase bonuses were eliminated at the end of 2023. What is at stake at the moment: the lack of affordable models and less aid in certain markets. The arrival of the R5 at Renault and the new ë-C3 at Citroën could perhaps change the situation.
However, from January to May 2024, more than 550,000 electric cars were sold, which still represents an increase of 2% compared to the same period in 2023, ACEA procrastinates. The market leader in this segment, Tesla, is suffering from this situation: they fell 10.2% in the first five months of the year compared to the same period in 2023.
Among the automobile groups, Volkswagen (+1.6%) is resisting the market decline with good sales at Skoda and Cupra, which offset the decline at Audi. Number 2, Stellantis, fell 6.9% in one year, with a drop in sales of Peugeot and Opel, which was not offset by the increase in those of Citroën.
Source: BFM TV
