New car sales in the European Union went up by 13.7% in April compared to last year, according to Europe’s auto industry group. This is the biggest increase since last October, especially after a drop in March.
The European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) said that countries like Spain, Germany, France, and Italy contributed to this rise in sales. Also, because Easter came early this year, there were two extra days for selling cars in April.
Why it’s important: European car companies are hoping that car sales will keep increasing this year. However, they know it won’t be easy because electric car sales are not growing as fast, and there’s tough competition from Chinese carmakers. Also, many people are finding it hard to afford cars because of high interest rates.
By the numbers: In April, sales of electric cars went up by 14.8% compared to last year, and hybrid-electric cars increased by 33.1%. However, Tesla’s sales in April went down by 2.3% compared to last year, which is the lowest since January 2023. But all in all, electric cars, including fully electric ones and hybrids, made up 47.8% of all new car registrations in April, which is higher than the previous year.
Car registrations at Europe’s biggest carmakers like Volkswagen, Stellantis, and Renault increased by 15.5%, 1.7%, and 11.0% respectively in the EU. Toyota’s registrations went up by 47.3%.
In April, the number of new cars registered in the EU, Britain, and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) rose by 12.0% to 1.08 million vehicles, according to the data.
