7:08 am, July 24, 2025
Europe’s new car market went into reverse in June, as monthly registrations dropped by 4.4% year-on-year to 1,250,868 units.
But by contrast, the market share of Chinese car brands in H1 2025 almost doubled when compared with corresponding period in 2024 to reach a new record of 5.1%, according to data released by analysts from JATO Dynamics.
The combined volume achieved by Chinese brands increased by 91 per cent, giving them a 5.2 per cent market share, marginally behind Mercedes-Benz and ahead of Ford at 3.8%. Combined, Chinese car brands outsold Mercedes in June.
Five automakers are driving this rapid growth: BYD, Jaecoo, Omoda, Leapmotor and Xpeng.
BYD, which has been particularly aggressive in its pricing strategy, registered 70,500 units in H1 2025 – a year-on-year increase of 311%. In June alone, BYD registered 15,565 units, entering the top-selling 25 brands and outselling Suzuki, Mini and Jeep. The BYD Seal U was along with the Volkswagen Tiguan the top-selling PHEV in Europe in June, and the third in H1.
While Chinese car brands continued their remarkable ascent, some of the industry’s biggest players have conceded market share.
Stellantis experienced the largest decrease in the first six months of the year, with its market share declining from 16.7% to 15.3% year-on-year. In fact, the group recorded its lowest H1 registrations volume across Europe-28 since its creation in 2021.
Tesla experienced the second steepest decrease in market share in H1 2025, down from 2.4% in H1 2024 to 1.6%. Over this period, it has lost its place in the group rankings to SAIC Motor, owner of MG, which outsold Tesla for the first time. The Chinese carmaker increased its volumes by 22% to 162,153 units, compared to a decline of 33% at Tesla to 109,264 units.
‘The updated Tesla Model Y has so far failed to provide the expected sales boost for the brand,’ JATO Dynamics’ Felipe Munoz noted. ‘At the same time, competition from BYD and Volkswagen Group is making it harder for Tesla to maintain its leadership position.’
While Tesla was Europe’s second most registered Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) maker in June, it occupied fourth position in the H1 BEV rankings, behind Volkswagen Group (28% share), Stellantis (11%) and BMW Group (10.3%). This is despite the BEV segment being a bright spot in Europe’s new car market with registrations exceeding the one million units mark for the first time in the first half of the year.
The overall decline in registrations was most in pronounced Italy (-17%), Belgium (-16%) and Germany (-14%), while France (-7%) and Switzerland (-6%) also recorded notable drops. In Romania, volumes decreased by a remarkable 50%.
June’s negative results follow months of instability in Europe’s new car market, with year-to-date registration figures totalling 6,844,426 units – a year-on-year decrease of 0.3 per cent, or 17,728 units fewer than in H1 2024.
Renault Group took the highest share of the European market overall, with the petrol-engined Clio being the region’s best-selling model.
‘Persistently high prices, geopolitical and economic tensions with Europe’s trading partners, and the post-pandemic market reality are behind the decline,’ aded Munoz, Global Analyst at JATO Dynamics. ‘Western Europe has lost the equivalent of more than 2.5 million units of annual sales since 2019.’
