The first half of 2025 was a difficult period for the EU commercial vehicle market, with substantial registration declines across key countries, compounding an already strained economic environment. Although the share of electrically chargeable vehicles increased, the pace of growth remains insufficient, as widespread adoption continues to be hampered by a lack of critical supporting infrastructure and conditions.
New van registrations in the EU dropped by 13.2%, driven largely by downturns in the three largest markets. Germany experienced the sharpest decline at 14.7%, followed by France (-12%) and Italy (-11.7%). In contrast, Spain bucked the trend, posting an 11.2% increase in registrations.
Truck registrations also fell sharply, down 15.4% to 155,367 units. This was largely due to a 14.5% decrease in heavy-truck registrations and a 20% drop in medium-truck registrations. All major markets saw significant declines, with Germany (-27.5%), France (-18.8%), Spain (-13.6%), and Italy (-13.3%) all reporting double-digit losses.
New commercial vehicles by power source
Although the decline was less pronounced, new EU bus registrations still contracted in the first half of 2025, reaching a total of 18,123 units. Among the major markets, Italy saw the sharpest drop at 24.5%, followed by Spain (-10.7%), France (-8%), and Germany (-3.2%). In contrast, countries such as Sweden (+222.4%) and Belgium (+76.7%) recorded strong growth.
Vans
Diesel continued to dominate the EU van market in the first half of 2025, although registrations fell by 15.6% to 598,001 units, resulting in a reduced market share of 82% (down from 84.3% in H1 2024). Petrol van registrations declined by 29.8%, representing a 4.9% market share. Electrically-chargeable vans gained momentum, increasing their share to 9.5% from 5.8% a year earlier. Hybrid vans also grew by 7.1%, though they still account for just 2.6% of the market.
Trucks
Diesel remained the predominant fuel type for trucks in the first half of 2025, representing 93.6% of new registrations, despite a 15.4% year-on-year decline. Electrically-chargeable trucks increased their market share to 3.6%, up from 2.1% in H1 2024. The Netherlands led this shift with a 187.6% surge in electric truck registrations, contributing nearly 20% of the EU total in this segment.
Buses
Electrically-chargeable buses gained ground, with their EU market share rising from 16.4% in H1 2024 to 21.6%. Germany, the largest bus market by volume, recorded a 105.2% increase in electric bus registrations, while Belgium followed with 523 units—up from just 110 a year earlier. In contrast, hybrid-electric bus registrations declined by 35.5%, making up 6.9% of the market. Diesel bus registrations also fell by 6.7%, now accounting for 64.7% of the market, down from 66.2% in the previous year.
Source: acea.auto