Feb 24 (Reuters) – New car sales in Europe fell year-on-year in January for the first time since June, weighed by \u200cdeclines in major markets including Germany, France, Belgium and Poland, \u200cdata from the European auto lobby ACEA showed on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The downturn was sharpest in \u200bNorway, where new car registrations, a proxy for sales, fell about 76% compared to the same month in 2025.<\/p>\n
WHY IT MATTERS<\/p>\n
Europe’s car industry is in the midst of a major transformation, with traditional car makers struggling \u200cto compete with cheaper \u2060Chinese models and with a now-delayed push towards decarbonisation.<\/p>\n
They are also navigating an even more uncertain trade environment \u2060after most U.S. tariffs were ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court of the United States on Friday.<\/p>\n
BY THE NUMBERS<\/p>\n
Sales in the European Union, Britain, \u200bSwitzerland, Norway \u200band Iceland fell 3.5% to 961,382 \u200bcars in January, ACEA’s data \u200cshowed.<\/p>\n
Petrol car registrations fell about 26% compared to the previous January, shrinking dramatically in France, by 49%, and in Germany, by 30%.<\/p>\n
They went from accounting for almost a third of the market share in Europe to just over a fifth in the period.<\/p>\n
In turn, battery-electric, plug-in \u200chybrid and hybrid- electric cars were \u200bup about 14%, 32% and 6%, and \u200bcollectively accounted for 69% of \u200bnew registrations, up from 59% in January 2025.<\/p>\n
Registrations of \u200cVolkswagen, BMW, Renault and Toyota fell \u200b3.8%, 5.7%, 15% and \u200b13.4%, respectively, while those of BYD surged 165%.<\/p>\n
Stellantis and Mercedes recorded gains of 6.7% and 2.8%, respectively.<\/p>\n