Bankinter | Car sales in Europe rose by 1.4% year-on-year in February. This moderates the year-to-date decline to 1.2%, with units sold exceeding 1.6 million. Plug-in hybrids led the growth (32.1%) for the month, followed by pure electric vehicles (20.6%) and non-plug-in hybrids (10.1%), whilst combustion engines declined (17.9% for petrol and 12.8% for diesel).
Bankinter analysis team’s view: A slight recovery in February (1.4%) following the sharp decline (3.9%) in the previous month. Sales of electrified vehicles are gaining momentum and increasing their market share. Specifically, pure electric vehicles now account for 18.8% of total registrations for 2026 as a whole (compared to 15.2% in 2025).
