2024-01-18 19:03:08
Published on: 01/18/2024 – 8:03 p.m. Modified on: 01/18/2024 – 8:01 p.m.
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Deliveries have resumed and orders are being fulfilled, but we remain far from pre-Covid levels. The market remained generally sluggish in 2023, slowed by inflation, particularly towards the end of the year.
In detail, the French, Italian and Spanish markets notably posted double-digit increases compared to 2022, the Association of European Automobile Manufacturers (ACEA) announced on Thursday.
Germany marked a halt in December (-23% over one year) with the sudden end of purchase bonuses for electric cars. But the continent’s largest market will still grow by 7.3% in 2023.
Hybrid cars have primarily benefited from the recovery, with more than 2.7 million units sold (+29.5% over one year), now capturing more than a quarter of the market (25.8%).
Cars: sales in the EU driven by electrics and hybrids © Olivia BUGAULT, Anibal MAIZ CACERES / AFP
Close to the EU, hybrids have also boosted the British market, which recovered by 17.9% compared to 2022, with 1.9 million new cars sold last year.
Plug-in hybrids, these vehicles equipped with a thermal engine and a small rechargeable electric battery on a terminal, saw their sales decline for the first time, to 813,000 units (-7%), affected by the withdrawal of subsidies in many countries.
Electric ahead of diesel
Electric cars continued their conquest (+37% over one year). With a 14.6% market share, for the first time over an entire year they exceed diesel (13.6%), which continues to decline.
Battery cars accounted for only 9.1% of sales in 2021 and 1.9% in 2019.
The American electric pioneer Tesla notably saw its sales almost double in Europe in 2023, in particular thanks to very aggressive prices. With 279,000 cars sold and its gigantic factory near Berlin, it surpasses historic manufacturers like Volvo or Nissan.
Its Model Y SUV has overtaken the Dacia Sandero to become the best-selling vehicle in Europe in 2023, a first for an electric car, the manufacturer said on Thursday.
As the sale of new thermal engine cars will be banned in Europe in 2035, all automobile groups have increased their offering of hybrid and electric cars.
The year 2024 should be marked by an overall drop in prices and the arrival of cheaper battery models, such as the Citroën ë-C3 and the new Renault 5 priced around 25,000 euros, as well as models from Chinese competitors like MG and BYD.
Electric cars might thus reach two million units and 20% market share in 2024, with a further increase of 35 to 40% in their sales, according to Sigrid de Vries, general secretary of ACEA.
Gasoline cars are not beaten however: they remain market leaders and have also benefited from the rebound in sales in 2023 (+10.6% over one year), particularly in Italy, Germany, France and Belgium .
They represent 35.3% of European sales, with 3.7 million units.
The rebound in the European market was driven by its leader, the Volkswagen group, with 2.8 million cars sold (+18% over one year), and by the Renault group, number three in sales with 1.2 million. units (+16.9%).
European number two, Stellantis, remained closer to its 2022 figures, with 1.9 million cars sold (+2.9%) and declines for its Fiat and Citroën brands in particular.
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