New car registrations in Europe (EU plus the UK and EFTA countries) fell by 2.6% in May 2024, y-o-y, amid falling demand for electric vehicles, according to a report published on Thursday by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).

Statistics comprise the 27 member states of the European Union, plus the United Kingdom and the countries of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

A total of 1.09 million cars were registered in May in Europe, as against 1.12 million units in the same period of 2023. Sales of battery-electric vehicles (BEV) fell by 10.8% in May, y-o-y, and plug-in hybrid car sales declined 9.6%, according to ACEA data. Deliveries of petrol and diesel cars also declined last month, by 6.3% and 11.4%, respectively.

In May 2024, the Romanian car market posted an increase by 14.7%, with 15,643 new vehicles registered, as against 13,641 in the similar period of 2023.

The main European markets reported mixed developments, as follows: decreases in Italy (6.6%), Germany (4.3%) and France (2.9%), increases in Spain (3.4%) and the United Kingdom (1.7%).

New car registrations in Europe increased by 4.6% in the first five months of 2024, y-o-y, with 5.56 million units registered.

The top five European markets reported growth between January and May 2024, namely the United Kingdom (7.1%), Spain (6.8%), Germany (5.2%), France (4.9%) and Italy (3.4%).

In the first five months of 2024, the Romanian car market posted a growth by 2.8%, with 62,147 vehicles registered, up from 60,472 in the similar period of 2023.

AGERPRES