New car sales in Europe face unprecedented challenges
A new report from Jato Dynamics has revealed that new car sales across 28 European markets are down by more 2.5 million units this year compared to pre-pandemic levels.
It has recorded sales of 9.74 million units in the first nine months of the year compared to 12.11 million in the same nine months of 2019.
The report also warns that these falling numbers suggest more deep-rooted challenges within the European car market. For example, emissions regulations are limiting the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles – and will ban them completely in 2030 in the UK and 2035 across Europe.
In a bid to boost EV sales and limit the sale of petrol and diesels, vehicle manufacturers have raised the prices of ICE models, up 26% in Germany, 17% in Spain and 29.4% in the UK. EV price rises have been modest by comparison over the same period
Felipe Munoz, global analyst at Jato Dynamics, said:
“Europe is a mature automotive market and therefore years of extreme growth are an event of the past. However, while the automotive market has typically demonstrated a cyclical nature, current weak performance and high price tags are not a natural response to years of crisis.”
