Tesla logs strong growth in European monthly sales

Tesla’s sales in Europe grew strongly in April, a sign that Elon Musk’s electric-vehicle maker continues to regain momentum in the region after a slump that stretched more than a year.

New-car registrations for Tesla models, a reflection of sales, jumped 46.5% on year last month to 10,654 units across the European Union, the U.K., Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, an industry body also known as ACEA. In the EU alone, sales grew over 67% from a year earlier to 9,169 vehicles.

The figures show that Tesla’s sales in the region are bouncing back and building momentum, with April marking the third consecutive month of growth after an improvement of over 84% in March and nearly 12% in February—the first month of higher new-car registrations for the group since December 2024.

Tesla had a challenging 2025: The company faced customer backlash due to Musk’s involvement with the Trump administration as he oversaw the Department of Government Efficiency, plus intense competition from Chinese auto giant BYD that gained market share in Europe.

BYD sales in the region have surged every month since ACEA began including the company in its data last summer, more than doubling last month to 27,008 units, according to ACEA data. Meanwhile, China’s Leapmotor logged a more than fivefold increase in European sales to 8,745 vehicles.

Tesla is continuing to invest in the continent. Earlier this month, the company said it would pour $250 million into its Berlin-Brandenburg plant in Germany to hire more workers and ramp up production as the group aims for one million cars built on site. The group recently hit the 750,000 milestone.

Tesla is also seeking approval for its full self-driving technology in the EU. In April, the Netherlands became the first country in the bloc to greenlight the system that helps drivers change lanes and navigate around other vehicles and objects while they remain in control. The software doesn’t make vehicles fully autonomous.

The Netherlands Vehicle Authority, or RDW, said at the time that it would submit an application to roll out the system across the whole of the EU. Last week, Tesla announced it was rolling out the system in Lithuania, the second EU country to grant approval.

The market for battery-electric vehicles in Europe grew over 38% last month. Registrations of hybrid-electric cars increased nearly 13%, while plug-in-hybrid models logged growth of more than 20%.

ACEA said monthly passenger-car registrations increased 7% in Europe as a whole and 5.1% in the EU, with sales up 2.7% in Germany and nearly 12% in Italy.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com