In January 2023, the European Union passenger car market grew by 11.3% to reach 760,041 units, indicating a strong start to the new year. However, it is important to note that the record low January volume in 2022 was due to an exceptionally low comparison base. During the first month of 2023, registrations of battery electric and hybrid passenger cars increased in the EU, accounting for 9.5% and 26.0% of the market, respectively. Nonetheless, gasoline remained the most commonly used fuel type for newly registered cars in the EU, with a market share of 37.9%.
New registrations of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in January increased by 22.9%, with 71,984 cars registered in the EU and a market share of 9.5% (compared to 8.6% in January 2022). This growth was significantly boosted by double- and triple-digit percentage gains in the majority of the region’s markets. However, there were a few exceptions in Germany (-13.2%), Sweden (-18.5%), and Italy (-8.7%), which are among the EU’s largest volume markets for this powertrain.
In the beginning of the year, hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) had a strong performance. They experienced double-digit growth in the four largest markets in the region: Spain (+59.3%), Italy (+24.7%), Germany (+19.0%), and France (+12.5%). As a result, their volumes increased by 22.1% to 197,982 units, giving them a market share of 26.0%, which is 2.3 percentage points higher than January 2022.
Sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) in the EU fell by 9.9% to 53,649 units in January. In Germany, which was the largest market for PHEVs by volume until last year, PHEV registrations more than halved (-53.2%). As a result, the market share for PHEVs decreased from 8.7% in January 2022 to 7.1% this year.
New gasoline vehicle registrations in the EU increased by 12.3%, increasing their market share to 37.9% (compared to 37.6% in 2022). Its rise was supported by all of the region’s major markets, including Spain (+59.4%), Italy (+15.5%), France (+11.9%), and Germany (+3.5%).
In contrast, despite a considerable gain in registrations in Italy (+21.4%) and Spain (+19.0%), the EU’s diesel car market struggled last month, with a 1.6% loss. As a result, the market share decreased by 2.0 percentage points, from 17.9% to 15.9%.
Source: ACEA
