EU car market grows in May – Electric cars as driver, Chinese manufacturers post strong gains

Electric cars as growth engine

The main growth drivers were once again electrified powertrains. „Elektro- und Hybridautos haben den Automarkt in der EU im Mai weiter angetrieben“, the statement said. The number of newly registered pure electric cars (BEVs) climbed by around 43 percent in May to 203,417 units. „Das seien 42,9 Prozent mehr als vor Jahresfrist“, according to ACEA. In total, just over 200,000 of these vehicles were newly registered in May. The share of pure battery-electric cars in the EU market rose from 15.3 to 20 percent in the first five months. „Jeder fünfte Neuwagen in der Europäischen Union ist nach Angaben des Branchenverbandes ACEA inzwischen ein Elektroauto."

ACEA sees several reasons for the strong EV boost. „Der ACEA führte das auf staatliche Kaufprogramme zurück“, the industry experts explained. „Zusätzlich dürften aber auch die hohen Spritpreise infolge des Iran-Kriegs eine Rolle spielen." In Germany as well, where the Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt already registered every fourth newly registered passenger car in May as a pure electric vehicle, purchase incentives and more expensive fuel reportedly led to rising BEV figures.

Hybrids remain leading, diesel in decline

Behind electric cars, however, hybrid vehicles remain the most sold powertrain type. „Die beliebteste Antriebsart sind weiterhin Hybride mit einem Marktanteil von 37,8 Prozent", according to ACEA. The association points out that hybrids are also in greater demand because the offering of new vehicles without hybridization has been shrinking for years. Pure diesel cars continued to lose ground: in May, only 69,482 compression-ignition vehicles were newly registered in the EU, a decline of around one fifth compared to the same month last year.

Chinese manufacturers on the fast track

A profound upheaval is emerging among manufacturers. „Bei den Herstellern verzeichnen vor allem chinesische Anbieter wie BYD, SAIC, Chery oder Leapmotor kräftige Zuwächse", ACEA announced. BYD, whose EU market share more than doubled in the first five months compared to the previous year, as well as SAIC with the MG brand (each with a 2.1 percent market share) are among the winners. Geely, which owns Volvo and Polestar, reached up to 2.6 percent. „Sie konnten in den ersten fünf Monaten ihre Verkäufe zum Teil auf das mehr als Sechsfache steigern", the association reported. Tesla recovered from its previous year's low and reached an EU market share of 1.9 percent from January to May.

European manufacturers under pressure

The established European manufacturers are coming under increasing pressure. Volkswagen remained the clear market leader but had to absorb a sales decline of 3.6 percent to 254,011 vehicles. „Von den großen europäischen Herstellern konnte Volkswagen zwar seinen Absatz steigern, das Plus von 1,5 Prozent reichte aber nicht, um den Marktanteil zu halten", wrote the Austria Presse Agentur citing ACEA data. Stellantis, whose group includes Fiat, Peugeot and Opel, among others, ranked second with a minus of 2.6 percent. Renault, in third place, lost 1.3 percent.

Asian competitors outside China also fell behind. „Renault, Toyota und Hyundai verloren Marktanteile", ACEA reported. Toyota and Hyundai also lost sales volume. As a group, Stellantis was at least able to increase its sales by 5.7 percent – „Die Opel-Mutter Stellantis legte 5,7 Prozent zu", as APA noted. According to the available data, the BMW Group recorded a plus of 3.7 percent.

Growth was not evenly distributed across all major EU markets. „Während Deutschland, Spanien und Italien ein Wachstum aufwiesen", the statisticians recorded increases. In Germany, however, the plus remained marginal at 0.1 percent. Elsewhere, the trend was declining: „Wurden in Belgien, den Niederlanden, Schweden und Frankreich weniger Autos verkauft als vor Jahresfrist", ACEA explained.

Market in upheaval

The fact that Chinese manufacturers are redirecting their production toward the European market also has to do with developments in their home country. In China, passenger car sales collapsed by 22 percent in May. The Chinese industry association CPCA drastically revised its annual forecast for the domestic car market in 2026 downward and now expects a minus of eleven percent. This intensifies the competitive pressure on European manufacturers, who are simultaneously confronted with accelerated electrification.

The data published by ACEA on Tuesday was distributed on 23 June 2026 via the Austria Presse Agentur. Accordingly, a market picture is emerging for the full year 2026 that continues to grow but is shifting significantly in competitive terms: electric cars as the new standard, Chinese brands on a steep upward trajectory, established manufacturers under consolidation pressure, and individual key European markets with stagnant or declining demand.