New car registrations in the European Union (EU) decreased by 0.6% in May 2025 year-to-date (YTD), compared to the same period in 2024, as reported by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).
However, year-on-year (YOY) registrations for May rose by 1.6% compared to the previous year.
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The battery-electric car market share for May 2025 YTD reached 15.4%, marking an increase from 12.1% in May 2024 YTD.
Hybrid-electric models continue to grow, maintaining their position as the most popular power type among buyers, with 35.1% of the market share.
In the first five months of 2025, new battery-electric car sales amounted to 701,089 units, securing 15.4% of the total EU market share.
Three of the four largest EU markets saw gains in battery-electric registrations: Germany (+43.2%), Belgium (+26.7%), and the Netherlands (+6.7%).
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By GlobalDataIn contrast, France experienced a decline of 7.1%.
Hybrid-electric car registrations rose to 1,601,090 units by May 2025 YTD, driven by growth in the four largest markets: France (+38.3%), Spain (+34.9%), Italy (+13.8%), and Germany (+12.1%).
Registrations of plug-in-hybrid electric cars in May 2025 YTD reached 375,182 units, spurred by increases in key markets such as Germany (+52.8%) and Spain (+66.6%). Plug-in-hybrid electric cars now represent 8.2% of total car registrations in the EU, up from 7.1% in May 2024 YTD.
The association said that the YOY variation for May 2025 showed a rise of 25% for battery-electric and 16% for hybrid-electric cars. Meanwhile, plug-in-hybrid electric cars recorded a 46.9% increase, marking their third consecutive month of growth.
Petrol car registrations declined by 20.2% by the end of May 2025, with major markets experiencing decreases.
France saw the steepest drop at 34.3%, followed by Germany (-26.1%), Italy (-15.4%), and Spain (-13.3%).
The market share for petrol fell to 28.6%, down from 35.6%.
Similarly, the diesel car market dropped by 26.6%, resulting in a 9.5% share for diesel vehicles in May 2025 YTD.
The May 2025 YOY variation showed a decline of 18.6% for petrol and 27.6% for diesel.
Earlier this week, JATO Dynamics reported that Chinese car manufacturers have significantly boosted their European market presence, doubling their share to 5.9% in May 2025.
