Car sales are up slightly in the first half of the year, but the next six months look bleak.
The French automobile market recorded a slight increase in the first half of the year, driven by hybrid models, but the second half of the year looks gloomy, according to data published on Monday, July 1 by the Automotive Platform and the AAAData firm. Over the first six months of 2024, with 914,890 registrations, the French market for new passenger cars is up 2.82% in raw data compared to the first half of 2023. Hybrid and electric models are driving the market with +25% and +15% sales respectively, according to AAAData, and 38.7% and 17.4% market shares.
But car sales are not returning to pre-Covid levels and “the curve is flattening, since April, we are losing market dynamics”underlines Julien Billon of AAAData. After May, June actually shows a second consecutive decline, with -4.79% and 181,000 vehicles sold to individuals, according to PFA figures. While sales of gasoline and diesel models are down, June also marks a halt for electric sales, with -11% over one year (-2.3% if we take into account two additional working days in June 2023).
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“Wait and see” of individuals and businesses
The market downturn is notably linked to “wait and see” individuals and businesses alike, who would like cheaper electric models that correspond to their uses, particularly in the compact categories. Furthermore, electric sales are slowed down by the new purchase bonus criteria for electric vehicles, which exclude successful models manufactured in China such as the Tesla Model 3, the MG and the Dacia Spring. And the boost given by the «leasing social» early 2024 should soon run out of steam. In this context, the second half of the year is expected to be down, and the year 2024 should remain below 1.9 million sales.
Among the manufacturers, the Toyota group, a pioneer of hybrids, is doing well in the first half of the year with an increase of almost 30% in its sales, and 68,485 units sold. The Volkswagen group is also up 8.45% with 128,930 units, driven by its Skoda, Seat and Cupra brands. The French groups are not experiencing the same dynamic: the number 1 Stellantis is experiencing a drop of 0.2%, with 260,592 units, affected in particular by sales declines at Peugeot and DS. The Renault group is up slightly (+0.5%), despite a drop in sales at Dacia. The Peugeot 208 remains the best-selling model to individuals in the first half of the year, ahead of the Renault Clio and the Dacia Sandero.
