BRUSSELS: New car registrations in the European Union rose 5.3% in the first eight months of 2026, according to figures released Thursday, as buyers turned increasingly to electrified vehicles amid rising energy prices and geopolitical uncertainty.
Battery-electric cars captured 21.7% of the EU market through August, up from 15.8% a year earlier. Hybrid-electric vehicles remained the most popular choice, with a 36.6% share. Plug-in hybrids accounted for 10%, up from 8.8% over the same period in 2025.
The combined share of petrol and diesel cars fell to 29% from 37.5% a year earlier.
Market support measures and a wider range of models helped drive demand for electrified vehicles, according to the report.
Electric cars
A total of 1,641,333 new battery-electric cars were registered from January through August. Three of the four largest EU markets, which together made up 64% of all battery-electric registrations, posted strong growth: France, up 74.2%; Germany, up 53.1%; and Denmark, up 40.9%. Belgium also recorded an increase of 13.1%.
Hybrids
Hybrid-electric registrations rose to 2,759,718 units. Spain (+21%) and Italy (+20.5%) led growth, while Germany (+5.2%) and France (+1.8%) also posted gains.
Plug-in hybrid registrations reached 758,082 units, driven by increases in Italy (+77.6%), Spain (+33.9%) and Germany (+15.6%).
Petrol and diesel
Petrol car registrations fell 18.6% through August, with declines across all major markets. France saw the steepest drop at 35.8%, followed by Germany (-21.9%), Spain (-18.5%) and Italy (-16.7%).
Petrol cars totaled 1,634,733 registrations, and their market share slipped to 21.7% from 28% a year earlier. Diesel registrations also fell 18.6%, and the fuel type now represents 7.3% of new EU registrations, down from 9.4%.
