BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Europe's new car registrations grew at a slower pace in April amid heightened geopolitical risks, data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, or ACEA, showed Wednesday.
New car registrations grew 5.1 percent year-on-year in April, slower than the 12.5 percent increase in March.
Italy registered a strong sales growth of 11.6 percent, followed by an 8.4 percent rise in Spain. Car sales in Germany grew 2.7 percent in April, while France reported a 0.3 percent drop.
During January to April, new car registrations increased 4.2 percent from the same period last year.
The lobby said the market continued to benefit from strong consumer demand for a range of electrified technologies, supported by new and revised tax benefits and incentive schemes across major European countries.
During the first four months of the year, battery-electric cars accounted for 19.7 percent of the EU market. Three of the four largest EU markets, together represented 64 percent of all battery-electric car registrations.
Hybrid-electric cars captured 38.2 percent of the market and remained the preferred choice among consumers in the EU. On the other hand, the combined market share of petrol and diesel cars declined to 30.2 percent down from 38.1 percent.
Registrations of plug-in-hybrid electric cars continued to grow, reaching 364,067 units in the April. New plug-in-hybrid electric cars represent 9.6 percent of EU registrations compared to 7.9 percent in 2025.
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