Europe sales jump 17% in July on growing EV demand

New-car sales in Europe rose in July as growing demand for electric vehicles and improved parts availability helped fuel a 12th consecutive month of growth.

Registrations in the EU, EFTA and U.K. markets increased 17 percent to 1.02 million vehicles, industry association ACEA said in a statement on Wednesday.

Sales of battery-electric cars surged 62 percent to 149,219, while deliveries of diesel models declined 9 percent to 128,135. Gasoline car sales were up 6 percent to 369,649.

Volkswagen Group sold the most passenger cars in Europe in July across all fuel types with 280,294 registrations, up 19 percent from a year ago.

Stellantis sales slipped 3.3 percent to 160,251 vehicles. Stellantis' deliveries have been hit by logistics problems.

Markets including Germany, France and Spain saw double-digit sales growth.

Cloudy outlook

Automakers have been working through orders that stacked up during a prolonged period of supply issues. Now that shortages of semiconductors and other critical components have eased, the industry’s outlook is clouded by prospects for higher living and borrowing costs taking more of a toll on consumers.

While Tesla’s Model Y was the best-selling vehicle in Europe in the first half, local manufacturers are preparing to fight back.

New battery-powered models from Volkswagen Group, Stellantis and BMW will hit showrooms in the coming months, with several making their debut at next week’s IAA Mobility auto show in Munich.

Buyers in Germany registered 48,682 full-electric cars in July, up 69 percent from a year ago and by far the most among European markets.

In the U.K. — where London drivers are now subject to more stringent emissions rules — sales soared 88 percent to 23,010 units.

France ranked third with 16,867 battery-electric vehicles delivered.

Through July, European sales rose 18 percent to 7.61 million. Despite a rebound in sales, year-to-date volumes are still 22 percent lower than pre-pandemic levels in 2019.