Last month’s sales in major EU markets, like Germany (-6.2%), Spain (-4.7%), Italy (-3.7%), and France (-1.5%), were dampened by Easter timing. However, Q1 saw a 4.4% rise in car registrations, with Italy and France leading at 5.7%, trailed by Germany (+4.2%) and Spain (+3.1%).
In March 2024, battery-electric car registrations dropped by 11.3% to 134,397 units, in the middle of a larger market downturn. Their market share decreased from 13.9% in March 2023 to 13% this year. Belgium (+23.8%) and France (+10.9%) saw double-digit increases, while Germany faced a notable decline of 28.9%. The first quarter of 2024 ended with 332,999 new battery-electric cars registered, up 3.8% from the same quarter last year.
Hybrid-electric cars surged with a 12.6% rise in March registrations, despite the overall market decline. France and Italy recorded significant increases of 29.6% and 8.3%, respectively, while Germany experienced a marginal decrease of 0.3%. This segment captured 29% of the market, up from 24.4% in March 2023, with sales reaching 299,426 units.
On the contrary, plug-in hybrid registrations fell by 6.5% last month, with Germany and Belgium experiencing declines of 4.5% and 15.3%, respectively. France countered with a modest increase of 3.6%. In March, plug-in hybrids accounted for 73,029 units sold, making up 7.1% of the overall car market.
