It is a divided world when we talk about the sale of electric cars in particular. The figures in Europe are completely different from here in Denmark.
August was a challenging month for car sales in the EU. Although there are still positive signs in overall car sales, the significant decline in electric car sales raises concerns about the future of sustainable transport. That's what Mobility Danmark writes.
At the end of August, 643,637 new cars were sold across the EU, which represents a decrease of 18.3 percent compared to the same period last year. Despite this significant decline, which affected the entire automotive industry, there is still a positive development to be traced this year to date.
Compared to the same period in 2023, car sales have increased by 1.4 percent year-to-date, which means that a total of 7,180,492 new cars have been registered in 2024.
Adm. director of Mobility Denmark, Mads Rorvig, comments on the current situation: "August showed a relatively large drop in car sales across the EU's markets. However, we look positively at the fact that total car sales are still above last year's level, even though recent months has been challenging.” This optimism is likely due to the overall market still managing to stay afloat despite recent challenges.
However, electric car sales paint a more gloomy picture. In August, only 92,627 new electric cars were registered throughout the EU, which is a dramatic decrease of 43.9 percent compared to August last year.
This drop brings electric car sales for the year 8.3 percent below the level from the same period in 2023. Such a decline indicates that the much-talked about 'green transition' faces significant challenges, especially as several of the major markets appear to be losing momentum in relation to electric mobility.
In contrast to this decline at EU level, Denmark appears to be going against the grain.
Here, electric car sales rose in August by as much as 47.7 percent, which indicates a significant interest in electric cars among Danish consumers.
This development in Denmark can perhaps be seen as a positive sign and an indication that the market for electric cars still has potential if the right incentives and political initiatives are in place.
Mads Rorvig points out the importance of political incentives to support electric car sales: "It is alarming to see electric car sales falling so drastically in several large markets. It illustrates to the extent that there can be major consequences for electric car sales when decisive incentives are removed too soon. becomes particularly clear now that, for example, Germany is in the process of reintroducing economic incentives to choose electric cars. Political measures such as these can hopefully help turn the tide."
This development emphasizes that without political support and economic incentives, it may prove difficult to maintain a rising curve in electric car sales.
