Commercial vehicle registrations: -28.2% eight months into 2020; -0.9% in July and -18.0% in August

Brussels, 24 September 2020 – Over the first eight months of 2020, demand for new commercial vehicles declined by 28.2% across the European Union. Double-digit percentage drops were recorded by each of the 27 EU markets so far this year.

Total new commercial vehicles

In July 2020, commercial vehicle registrations in the European Union saw minimal losses (-0.9%) compared to previous months, with three of the four largest markets in the region posting growth: Italy (+16.2%), Spain (+2.9%) and France (+1.6%).

Nevertheless, the decline increased again in August, when demand dropped by 18.0% to 126,710 units. All vehicle segments recorded a drop in new registrations and, with the exception of Italy (+2.6%), the major markets saw a contraction in demand last month: Spain (-23.0%), Germany (-22.7%) and France (-3.1%).

Over the first eight months of 2020, demand for new commercial vehicles declined by 28.2% across the EU. Double-digit percentage drops were recorded by each of the 27 EU markets so far this year, including the four major ones: Spain (-36.5%), Italy (-26.1%), France (-25.7%) and Germany (-25.1%).

New light commercial vehicles (LCV) up to 3.5t

August figures show that the EU market for light commercial vehicles contracted by 18.6% last month, totalling 107,881 units. France, the biggest market for vans, posted a 2.1% decline in August after demand increased in July (+2.0%). Spain (-24.4%) and Germany (-22.2%) recorded double-digit drops in August, while Italy was the only major market posting growth for two consecutive months (+15.1% in July and +4.1% in August).

So far this year, registrations of new vans in the European Union decreased by 26.7%. Among the four major markets, Spain saw the biggest drop in demand (-37.1%), followed by Italy (-26.4%), France (-24.8%) and Germany (-22.4%).

New heavy commercial vehicles (HCV) of 16t and over

While July (+2.8%) represented the first month of growth this year, EU heavy truck registrations returned to decline in August (-11.7%). Looking at the major markets of the EU, Germany posted the strongest drop (-29.0%), followed by France (-6.7%). By contrast, both Italy (+19.4%) and Spain (+2.2%) recorded growth last month.

From January to August 2020, 121,655 heavy trucks were registered across the European Union, down 37.9% compared to the same period last year. Demand for commercial vehicles of 16 tonnes and over fell by 36.7% in Germany, followed by France (-35.3%), Spain (-30.8%) and Italy (-23.8%).

New medium and heavy commercial vehicles (MHCV) over 3.5t

In August 2020, the truck segment posted disappointing results (-11.9%) following its positive performance in July (+3.1%). Germany – the leading market for these vehicles – recorded the sharpest decline (-26.0%) of the four biggest markets, while Italy posted strong growth (+20.6%).

During the first eight months of the year, the European Union counted a total of 152,844 new trucks registered, or 35.8% less than in 2019. The major EU markets faced significant losses: Germany (-33.9%), France (-33.7%), Spain (-29.7%) and Italy (-23.5%).

New medium and heavy buses & coaches (MHBC) over 3.5t

Last month, EU demand for new buses and coaches contracted by 26.7%, a major contrast with the positive results seen in July (+18.1%). August registrations fell by more than half in Italy (-63.4%), followed by Spain (-34.0%), France (-23.9%) and Germany (-5.3%).

Eight months into 2020, bus and coach registrations in the European Union decreased by 29.0%, counting 17,890 new vehicles in total. Spain (-46.6%) and Italy (-29.1%) continue to record strong losses, while the downturn is easing in France (-17.1%) and Germany (-12.0%).

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About ACEA

  • The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) is the Brussels-based trade association of the 14 major car, van, truck and bus producers in Europe.
  • The ACEA commercial vehicle members are DAF Trucks, Daimler Truck, Ford Trucks, Iveco Group, MAN Truck & Bus, Scania, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, and Volvo Group.
  • Visit www.acea.auto for more information about ACEA, and follow us on www.twitter.com/ACEA_auto or www.linkedin.com/company/ACEA/.
  • Contact: Francesca Piazza, Senior Statistics Manager, fp@acea.auto.

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About the EU automobile industry

  • 13.0 million Europeans work in the automotive sector
  • 11.5% of all manufacturing jobs in the EU
  • €374.6 billion in tax revenue for European governments
  • €101.9 billion trade surplus for the European Union
  • Over 7% of EU GDP generated by the auto industry
  • €59.1 billion in R&D spending annually, 31% of EU total
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