International Brands Achieve Record Market Share in June

In the first half of 2026, new passenger car registrations in Germany totaled nearly 1.485 million vehicles, marking a 5.8 percent increase compared to the same period the previous year. This is according to an analysis of figures from the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) conducted by the Association of International Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (VDIK). New registrations of international brands grew at an above-average rate of +7.7 percent during this period, accounting for approximately 44.2 percent of the total market.
In June 2026, new passenger car registrations rose by 15.7 percent compared to the same month the previous year, reaching 296,378 units, with two additional business days. Adjusted for calendar effects, market growth thus stands at +5.2 percent. In June, new registrations of international brands accounted for approximately 45.9 percent of the total market, bringing their market share to about 1.5 percentage points above the previous year’s figure. This is the highest recorded figure in over 17 years.

VDIK President Imelda Labbé: “With their record market share in June, international manufacturers are on a growth trajectory, particularly in the BEV market, where they accounted for 46.8 percent of all new BEV registrations last month. They thus contributed significantly to the market recovery in the first half of the year. Market growth of 5.8 percent since the beginning of the year has been driven by increasing demand for BEVs and creates the potential for a total market of close to 3.0 million vehicles by 2027.”

368,006 all-battery electric passenger cars (BEVs) were newly registered in the first half of 2026, representing a 48.0 percent increase compared to the same period the previous year. New registrations of international brands in the BEV market are also expected to have risen at an above-average rate of 62.1 percent to 164,203 vehicles, giving them a BEV market share of 44.6 percent. The total BEV market share for the first six months of 2026 stood at 24.8 percent, about 7.1 percentage points higher than in the first half of 2025. In June 2026, the third-highest BEV market share on record—and by far the highest since the end of the commercial electric vehicle purchase incentive program in August 2023—was recorded: Approximately 28.4 percent of all new passenger car registrations in the past month were purely battery-electric. This corresponds to approximately 84,057 vehicles (+78.2 percent). International brands held a market share of approximately 46.8 percent (+2.6 percentage points).

Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) also saw growth in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period the previous year. New PHEV registrations rose by 17.9 percent since the start of the year to 163,793 vehicles, giving them a market share of 11.0 percent (+1.1 percentage points compared to the first half of 2025). The PHEV market share of international brands stood at approximately 40.7 percent during this period. In June, new registrations of plug-in hybrids grew by 25.8 percent to 32,212 units, giving them a total market share of approximately 10.9 percent. With an estimated 13,804 new PHEV registrations for international brands, these brands held a market share of 42.9 percent last month.

In total, electric vehicles – that is, BEVs and PHEVs combined—accounted for 531,799 new registrations in the first half of 2026, up 37.2 percent from the same period the previous year. Their market share thus stood at 35.8 percent. In June, 116,269 new electric passenger cars were registered, an increase of 59.8 percent compared to the same month the previous year. At 39.2 percent, the electric vehicle market share in June was about 10.8 percentage points higher than in June 2025.

The number of new commercial vehicle registrations in the first half of the year was 167,221, down 1.5 percent from the same period a year earlier. In June 2026, 34,771 new commercial vehicles were registered (+8.1 percent).