BYD and Chery overtake Tesla: China accounts for 84% of global car market growth
Official registration data for the European Union, EFTA and the UK shows that Europe’s car market is growing steadily. But a new AutomotiveCompass analysis from the Center of Automotive Management (CAM), led by Professor Dr. Stefan Bratzel, shows how unevenly that growth is distributed: Almost all of it comes from Asian automakers.
Of the roughly 500,000 additional new cars registered in Europe between January and August 2026, exactly 419,000 came from Chinese automakers. They accounted for 84% of the market’s total growth. All other automakers combined recorded an increase of just 0.3%. Without the surge in registrations of Chinese cars, the European market would have grown by less than 1.0%.
Sales record for Chinese automakers
Chinese automakers also reached a new sales milestone in Europe. Their 1,034,685 new registrations mark the first time they have exceeded 1 million cars sold on the continent. That is a 68.1% increase over the same period last year, lifting their combined market share from 7.1% to 11.3%.
BYD and Chery stand out in the figures. BYD recorded 234,099 new registrations in the first eight months, up 144.1%. Chery and its Omoda and Jaecoo subbrands registered 207,871 cars, an increase of nearly 280%. Both automakers have now overtaken Tesla in European registrations. Elon Musk’s US automaker registered 191,787 electric vehicles over the same period.
More all-electric cars registered than gasoline-only models
Beyond the dominance of Asian automakers, the data points to another shift in Europe’s car market. For the first time, registrations of all-electric vehicles (BEVs) exceeded those of gasoline-only cars in the first eight months of the year. BEV registrations rose 38.8% to 2.13 million, lifting their market share to 23.2%. Gasoline-only registrations fell 17.5% to 1.97 million, while diesel registrations dropped 19.0%.
EV adoption varies sharply across Europe. BEVs account for nearly 30% of the market in France, 26.2% in Germany and 25.6% in the UK. In Italy, by contrast, their share is just 8.0%, with most buyers still choosing conventional hybrids.
The competitive landscape is changing rapidly for established automakers. In its analysis, CAM identifies cost structures, software and electric vehicles as critical to their future. Registration figures reinforce its warning: Automakers that fail to keep pace with the shift are steadily losing ground to Asian competitors.
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