The demand for ‘electrified’ cars was also a mainstay of the car market in the EU in April, compensating for weaker sales of gasoline and diesel cars, data from the manufacturer’s association ACEA showed on Wednesday.
In April, approximately 972,000 new cars were registered in the EU, 5.1 percent more than in the same month last year.
In March, sales jumped by as much as 12.5 percent, fueled by new and amended tax breaks and incentives in major European economies, the association said.
The data for April show stabilization in the four leading markets, so in Germany sales increased by a modest 2.7 percent, while in France they remained at the level of last April.
Among the big four, the number of registered new cars in Italy jumped the most, by 11.6 percent, ACEA calculations show. Significant growth was also recorded in Spain, by 8.4 percent.
Popular hybrids
The most popular powertrain was also in April hybrid electric cars with a market share of 38.2 percent and 359 thousand new registrations in April, 12.0 percent more than last year.
According to ACEA’s definition, the group includes “full and partial hybrids” which, depending on the power of the battery, can drive on average up to 62 percent of the time on electric power only.
Sales of battery-powered electric cars grew the most, by 37.7 percent and 200,000 new registrations. Their share in the market was 19.7 percent.
The sale of plug-in hybrids also increased significantly, by 16.5 percent, with 95 thousand registered new vehicles and a market share of 9.6 percent.
Sales of gasoline and diesel vehicles decreased again, by 16.3 and 17.1 percent, respectively. Gasolines held a share of 22.5 percent, and diesels 7.7 percent, according to ACEA data.
The results of Chinese companies reflect the popularity of fully electric and ‘electrified’ vehicles, so Leapmotor sales have increased fivefold, according to ACEA estimates. Chery sold almost four times as many cars, and BYD twice as many as in April last year. Tesla also recorded a jump, with 67.2 percent more vehicles sold than in April 2025.
