Weak half-year – alarming market in June – Federal government cancels subsidies

The Association of International Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (VDIK) regrets that the new German government has now squandered two opportunities to promote electromobility in the space of just a few days. Firstly, the extension of the innovation booster to commercially used and leased vehicles and now the decision not to implement the planned reduction in electricity tax for consumers as announced.

“We are disappointed that the governing coalition has now withdrawn the promised reduction in electricity tax. We urgently need the announced measures to promote e-mobility in order to achieve a share of well over 20 percent BEVs in new registrations and thus achieve the CO2 fleet limits. In any case, the federal government is not providing any positive impetus for private e-car buyers,” says VDIK President Imelda Labbé.

The growth in BEV registrations is still too low and continues to be glossed over by the slump in new registrations in 2024. In the purely battery electric passenger car (BEV) segment, new registrations in the period from January to June 2025 amounted to 248,726 vehicles, which corresponds to growth of 35.1% compared to the same period last year. The market share of BEVs was 17.7% in the first half of 2025 and therefore still below the level required to achieve the CO₂ target. International brands are expected to account for around 39.5% of all new BEV registrations, an increase of 2.8 percentage points compared to the same period last year. In June 2025, 47,163 BEVs were newly registered, which corresponds to an increase of 8.6% compared to the same month last year. The BEV market share was 18.4%, around 3.8 percentage points higher than in the same month last year. New registrations of international brands rose at an above-average rate in June, by an estimated 16.9% to 20,095 vehicles.

A total of 1,402,789 new passenger cars were registered in Germany in the first half of 2025, a decrease of 4.7% compared to the same period last year. International brands accounted for 601,959 of these vehicles, giving them a market share of 42.9%. This is according to an analysis of the figures from the German Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) by the Association of International Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (VDIK). In June 2025, 256,193 new passenger cars were registered – a decrease of 13.8 percent compared to June of the previous year. The share of international brands in the overall market amounted to around 43.7% in June.

In addition, 138,905 plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) were newly registered in the first half of 2025, 55.1% more than in the same period last year. The PHEV market share was therefore 9.9% of all new passenger car registrations. International manufacturers accounted for around 42.0% of the market. PHEVs also recorded strong growth in June: with 25,608 newly registered vehicles, new registrations increased by 66.4% compared to June 2024. The market share amounted to 10.0%, which corresponds to an increase of 4.8 percentage points. International brands are expected to increase their PHEV registrations by 69.0% in June, reaching a market share of around 39.2% of all new PHEV registrations.

A total of 387,631 electric vehicles – i.e. BEVs and PHEVs combined – were newly registered in the first half of 2025, which corresponds to a market share of 27.6%. In June, electric vehicles accounted for 72,771 new car registrations, 23.8% more than in the same month last year. Their market share was 28.4% (June 2024: 19.8%).

New registrations of commercial vehicles amounted to 169,849 units in the first half of 2025, a decrease of 17.8% compared to the same period last year. In June, 32,157 new commercial vehicles were registered – 32.1% fewer than in June 2024. This significant drop is also due to a special effect: In June 2024, an increased number of new registrations were brought forward due to the new EU type approval regulations coming into force on July 7, 2024, which led to significant growth in the commercial vehicle market in particular.