Karachi, August 29, 2025 -* New car sales in Europe rose 5.9% in July, the best month for more than a year in a boost for the struggling industry as consumer confidence weakens, European Automobile Manufacturers Association data showed on Thursday.
Plug-in hybrid sales in the European Union recorded the biggest jump since at least January 2023, when the ACEA started reporting the figure, while those of battery-electric cars had the biggest increase since August 2023.
Germany, which in June presented an EV incentive plan replacing a subsidy scheme removed in 2023, recorded increases of 58% and 83.6% in BEV and PHEV sales respectively in July.
Despite rising EV sales, battery-electric carmaker Tesla lost market share in Europe for a seventh consecutive month and trailed China’s BYD, which was included in the monthly sales data for the first time.
*WHY IT’S IMPORTANT*
Europe’s battered car industry faces challenges including U.S. import tariffs, competition from China and difficulties in meeting profitably domestic regulations for EV adoption.
ACEA CEO Ola Kaellenius co-signed a letter on Wednesday to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying that EU targets to cut CO2 emissions from vehicles, including a 100% reduction for cars by 2035, are no longer feasible.
*BY THE NUMBERS*
Sales in the European Union, Britain and the European Free Trade Association rose to 1.09 million cars in July, ACEA data showed. Registrations at Volkswagen and Renault rose 11.6% and 8.8% year-on-year, respectively, but fell 1.1% at Stellantis
Tesla’s sales dropped 40.2%, squeezing its market share to 0.8% from 1.4% a year ago. BYD’s sales jumped 225.3% to give it 1.2% of the market.
Total EU car sales rose 7.4%. Registrations of battery electric, hybrid electric and plug-in hybrid cars were up 39.1%, 56.9% and 14.3%, respectively, to account collectively for 59.8% of the bloc’s registrations, up from 51.1% in July 2024.
Overall sales in Germany rose 11.1%, and fell 5% in the UK, 7.7% in France and 5.1% in Italy. Spain, Poland and Austria recorded increases of 17.1%, 16.5% and 31.6%, respectively.
