EU car sales decline by most in 16 months

New car registrations in the European Union dropped in March, with the timing of the Easter holidays hammering sales, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association or ACEA.

Sales across the bloc totalled 1.03m last month, down 5.2% on March 2023, following annual increases of 12.1% and 10.1% in January and February, respectively.

This was the worst year-on-year decline in sales since November 2022.

According to the ACEA, the EU's four largest markets suffered notable declines: Germany (‑6.2%), Spain (-4.7%), Italy (-3.7%), and France (-1.5%).

What's more, battery-electric car sales dropped by 11.3% to just 134,397 units sold across the region, which the ACEA said reflected the "broader market downturn". The result was BEV's share of the market falling to 13.0%, from 13.9% a year earlier.

The market share of hybrid-electric cars, however, increased to 29% from 24.4% 12 months prior, as sales increased by 12.6% to 299,426 units. Plug-in hybrids fell 6.5% o 73,029, giving them a market share of 7.1%.