New car registrations in Europe, down 1.9 percent in November

In November 2024, new EU car registrations fell by 1.9 percent. France led the way with a sharp 12.7 percent decline, followed by Italy (-10.8 percent), while the German market stagnated slightly (0.5 percent). Among the four most significant EU markets, only Spain recorded growth (6.4 percent), according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).

Eleven months into 2024, new car registrations remained stable (+0.4 percent), reaching 9.7 million units. While the market in Spain performed positively (+5.1 percent), declines were witnessed in France (-3.7 percent), Germany (-0.4 percent), and Italy (-0.2 percent).

The battery-electric car market share for November 2024 fell to 15 percent from 16.3 percent last year, while volumes dropped by 9.5 percent.

Plug-in hybrid car registrations for November 2024 also declined by 8.8 percent. The market share for this type of vehicle reached 7.6 percent last month, a decrease of 0.6 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

Registrations of battery-electric cars declined by 9.5 percent to 130,757 units in November 2024. This drop was primarily driven by a significant decrease in registrations in Germany (-21.8 percent) and France (-24.4 percent). It resulted in a year-to-date market volume 5.4 percent lower than the same period last year, with the total market share now at 13.4 percent.

Plug-in hybrid car registrations fell by 8.8 percent last month, following significant declines in France (-19.6 percent), Belgium (-61.4 percent), and Italy (-31.4 percent). In November, plug-in hybrids accounted for 7.6 percent of the car market, down from 8.1 percent last year. Year-to-date volumes were also down, decreasing by 8 percent compared to the same period last year.

Hybrid-electric registrations increased by 18.5 percent in November, with market share rising to 33.2 percent, up from 27.5 percent last November, exceeding petrol car registrations for the third consecutive month.

In November 2024, petrol car sales dropped by 7.8 percent. All four major markets recorded decreases: France experienced the steepest drop, with registrations plummeting by 31.5 percent, followed by Italy with a 12.3 percent decline. Though more modest, Germany and Spain recorded declines as well (-5.4 percent and -2.3 percent, respectively). With 266,115 new cars registered last month, the market share for petrol dropped to 30.6 percent, down from 32.5 percent in the same month last year. The diesel car market declined by 15.3 percent, resulting in a 10.6 percent market share last November. Overall, decreases were observed in most EU markets.