EU electric car market share to decline by 2024

According to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA), the EU automobile market closed last year with 10.6 million sales, recording a growth of 0.8 percent compared to 2023.

Except for the 7.1 percent growth in Spain last year, growth in the EU market was low compared to 2023. There was a 3.2 percent decrease in France, 1 percent in Germany and 0.5 percent in Italy.

Despite overall growth, the volume of the EU automobile market remains 18.4 percent behind the pre-COVID-19 pandemic level.

Although petrol cars in the EU maintain their leadership with a 33.3 percent market share in 2024, they appear to have declined compared to their 35.3 percent share in 2022.

Last year, diesel car sales were 1 million 267 thousand, and the market share of these vehicles decreased from 13.6 percent to 11.9 percent compared to 2023.

Hybrid car sales in the EU increased by 20.9 percent compared to 2023, reaching 3.3 million units. Thus, hybrid cars had a 30.9 percent share in the total automobile market.

Electric cars will remain the third most popular choice for buyers in 2024, with a market share of 13.6 percent last year, up from 14.6 percent in 2023.

Best selling brands

When considered on a brand basis, the sales leader in the EU last year was German carmaker Volkswagen with 1,371,465 units. Toyota came in second with 928,767 sales, BMW third with 774,925 sales. Skoda fourth with 766,510 sales, and Renault fifth with 699,214 units.

Last year, Tesla's sales in the EU amounted to 327,034. In electric car sales, Tesla, Volkswagen and Renault stand out as the best-selling brands.

The EU is expected to strengthen its steps in global competition

There are discussions in the EU about the future of electric cars. The report shared by ACEA points out that, unlike China and the US, the EU does not have a solid industrial strategy to support electric vehicle production.

Despite the many incentives issued by the EU for electric vehicles, the fact that sales have not reached the desired level and sufficient work has not been done to establish charging stations raises question marks on this issue.

China's auto sales rebounded strongly in the last quarter of 2024 to reach nearly 23 million units, up 2.6 percent year-on-year, largely driven by government tax incentives, according to an ACEA report.

China’s sales account for about 31 percent of global auto sales. China’s dominance of the EV supply chain has overshadowed EU efforts to support European EV production.