European Motorcycles Market is deeply declining in 2025. Following a 2020-2024 strike of five consecutive growth, the market reported Year to Date April sales at 493.002 (-13.4%). Voge, Zontes and QJ Motors are rapidly gaining space.
Please note data reported regards the motorcycles industry in large extended, including not only 2/3 wheelers as moped, scooter, motorcycles, but even other vehicles, like ATVs, usually included in this industry. Differently from ACEA and other local sources (like FEBIAC), we do not consider the powered-bicycles inside the industry, even because data available regards only registered bicycles and are limited to those countries (Belgium, Netherlands, France) where a plate is required.
Economic Environment
After a prolonged period of stagnation, the EU economy is returning to modest growth, while the disinflation process continues. The European Commissions’ Autumn Forecast projects GDP growth in 2024 at 0.9% in the EU and 0.8% in the euro area. Economic activity is forecast to accelerate to 1.5% in the EU and to 1.3% in the euro area in 2025, and to 1.8% in the EU and 1.6% in the euro area in 2026.
The disinflationary process that started towards end-2022 continues despite a slight pick-up in inflation in October, largely driven by energy prices.
Price pressures in services remain high, but are projected to moderate as from early 2025, driven by slowing wage growth and an expected pick-up in productivity, and supported by negative base effects.
Motorcycles Industry Trend and Perspectives
Following a 2020-2024 strike of five consecutive growth, the European motorcycles market started the 2025 with the need to dilute the strong dealer stock of self registered vehicles, which several OEMs had been forced during the last quarter 2024 by the noise limits related to the euro 5 rules.
Focused on sell out all the pre-registered vehicles in stock, the manufacturers were not able to start positively the new year and the first four months reported sales at 493.002 (-13.4%).
However, looking at single country performance in 2024, the differences are sharp.
At country level, the largest market still is Italy while sales declined 10.6%. However other three big market performed with more negative data, with France down 21.5%, Germany down 28.0% and UK down 31.1%.
Thanks to a mere 0.2% lost, the third largest market in Europe was Spain .
Looking at the others market, in 6th place Greece keeps growing (+0.3%) while in 7th The Netherlands lost only 0.6%.
Market Leaders and Performance
Looking at the competitive arena, the market leader is Honda with in the last quarter sold over the doulde than the second, although losing 4.0%.
The second was Yamaha losing 14.3% and keeping the gap over the followers, BMW (-13.0%) and Piaggio (-19.2%) overall.
New brands are emerging with Voge up 61.8% and Zontes up 61.9%. QJ Motor increased sales 111.3%
