ISTANBUL

The EU passenger car market grew by 2.1% in November compared to the same month last year, with 887,491 new automobile registrations, according to data released Tuesday by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.

In Europe, including the EU, the European Free Trade Association, and the UK, the new sales also rose 2.4% year-on-year to 1.08 million units in the same period.

Among the EU’s major car markets, Spain led with a 12.9% increase, followed by the Netherlands with 3.3%, and Germany with 2.5%.

Electric vehicles continued to drive market growth. Battery-electric vehicle (BEV) sales surged 44.1% year-on-year in November, reaching 188,730 units and accounting for 21.3% of total new car sales.

Italy saw a 132.5% surge in BEV sales, while Spain and Germany saw 60.9% and 58.5%, respectively.

Hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs) further cemented their dominance, accounting for 34% of the EU market in November. Registrations of HEVs rose 4.2% to 301,819 units.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles also showed robust growth, with sales climbing 38.4% to 91,699 units.

In contrast, traditional internal combustion engine vehicles saw sharp declines. Petrol car registrations fell 21.9%, while their market share was down to 23.3%.

Diesel car registrations also dropped 23.2%, reducing their market share to 7.9% in November. Double-digit declines were recorded in most EU markets.