Economic and Market Report: Global and EU auto industry – Full year 2023

Sales

• Global new car sales grew by almost 10% after remaining stable in 2022
• EU new car sales surged by almost 14%, totalling 10.5 million units
• New battery-electric car sales grew by 37%, reaching a market share of 14.6%
• Although China’s car market stalled in the first three quarters of 2023, full-year sales grew by 4.5%
• Japanese and US car sales experienced robust growth, increasing by almost 16% and over 14%, respectively

Production

• Global car production hit 76 million units, a substantial 10.2% increase
• The EU solidified its position as the second-largest global car producer as production reached 12.1 million units, a growth of over 11%
• China produced over 25.3 million cars, growing by over 9% and now represents more than a third of the global car manufacturing market
• The US produced over 7.6 million cars, growing by 8.5%
• Japan built over 7.7 million cars, a 17.4% increase

New EU car trade

• The EU recorded a €90.6 billion surplus in new car trade, almost equivalent to 2022’s figures
• China is the top source for EU car imports in volume and value, growing by almost 40% and over 37%, respectively
• The UK and Japan rank second and third in value, respectively, capturing just over a 14% share each.
• The US is the top destination for exports in value, while the UK ranks first in volume
• China was the only major trade partner where exports declined; by over 20% in value and around 14.4% in volume

ACEA’s Economic and Market Report provides data on car sales, production, and trade in Europe and globally.