German car sales rise in April but electric lag persists

Additional working days boosted new-car sales in Germany in April, but demand for electric vehicles cooled further in the wake of the phaseout of government subsidies.

A total of 243,102 new cars were registered in Europe's largest economy last month, the KBA federal transport authority said, up nearly 20% on a year earlier.

The jump was mainly down to three additional working days compared with April 2023.

Adjusted for calendar swings, the increase shrinks to just three%, said EY analyst Constantin Gall.

While sales of petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrids all rose last month, the slump in demand for battery-powered electric vehicles (BEVs) persisted.

With just under 30,000 units sold, registrations for BEVs were down 0.2% year-on-year as the sector reels from the government's decision late last year to scrap purchase incentives.

Despite the arrival of new models and manufacturer discounts, the market share for BEVs fell to 12.2% in April, said EY's Gill, compared with nearly 15% a year earlier.

And there was little sign of an imminent recovery, he added.

"Not much will happen in the electric car market this year," Gill said.

"Many potential buyers are unsure and are waiting to make a purchase decision, or are opting for a combustion engine once again."

Despite the electric slowdown, the government has said it still aims to see at least 15 million fully electric cars on German roads by 2030, a goal observers believe is increasingly out of reach.