During the first nine months of 2023, the European motorcycle market experienced a substantial increase in sales. A recent report from the European Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers (ACEM) states that from January to September 2023, a total of 873,985 new motorcycles were registered in the main markets of the old continent.
For reference, 2022, which was also a strong year for the European market, saw 781,839 new motorcycle registrations from January to September. For 2023, this number grew an impressive 11.8%, with 873,985 new motorcycle registrations in the same period.
It is worth noting that Italy seems to be the strongest market for two-wheeled vehicles, as it recorded the highest growth of 19.4%, with a total of 271,552 new two-wheeled vehicles registered. Spain comes in second place, with 154,019, registering an increase of 13.4%. In third place, Germany recorded a growth of 9.6% thanks to 190,490 new registrations. France ranks third with an 8.7% increase, with 168,118 units registered. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom recorded stable sales figures, with 89,806 registrations, representing a decline of 0.4%.
While motorcycles had a substantial increase in sales numbers, the same unfortunately cannot be said for mopeds. From January to September 2023, only 155,098 mopeds were registered, a decrease of 25% compared to last year’s 206,927. For reference, the ACEM report includes only France, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Belgium, and Spain. Mopeds occupy a rather obscure space in the world of two-wheelers, as their categorization varies depending on the region. In Europe, they are generally considered L1eB and L2e for two and three-wheeled vehicles, respectively. Meanwhile, some regions also include L1e-A vehicles (certain e-bikes) as mopeds.
En el informe de ACEM, el Secretario General Antonio Perlot afirmó que ha habido un entusiasmo sostenido por las dos ruedas, tanto en términos de ocio como de desplazamientos diarios. “El fuerte crecimiento del mercado europeo en los primeros nueve meses evidencia el interés sostenido a largo plazo de los consumidores por los vehículos de dos ruedas, tanto para los desplazamientos diarios como para el ocio. Los primeros números de octubre confirman la tendencia positiva para las motos, con los volúmenes de ciclomotores recuperándose parcialmente”. De hecho, después de EICMA 2023, el mercado de motos está claramente en expansión, con cada vez más modelos nuevos esperados para entrar en escena, tanto eléctricos como de combustión interna, para el año modelo 2024.
Finalmente, es importante tener en cuenta que el informe de ACEM, aunque pinta un buen panorama de la industria europea de motos, no abarca todas las marcas que ocupan el espacio de las dos ruedas. Los miembros de ACEM incluyen 18 fabricantes como BMW, Ducati, KTM, MV Agusta, Piaggio y Triumph, así como las cuatro grandes marcas japonesas. Vale la pena señalar que los nuevos actores, especialmente los de China, no están representados en este informe, por lo que es probable que las cifras de ventas sean mucho más altas que los 873,985 nuevos registros mencionados anteriormente.
