Synthèse

France's car manufacturing market has been hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis, with a dramatic 38.6% drop in car registrations in the first half of 2020, and leading companies such as Renault and PSA seeing their share prices fall significantly. Despite difficulties, including production and supply chain issues, in 2022 the sector grew by 13.4%, still below pre15.7 billion, as imports, notably from China, tripled.

The market has notably shifted towards electric and hybrid vehicles, with nearly 40% of registrations by 2022 and government incentives of up to 7,000 euros for consumers. However, skepticism remains, with only 26% of French people planning to buy electric vehicles in 2023, citing high costs. Worldwide sales of the 16 largest automakers reached a record €1,868 billion in 2022, but the French automotive industry is increasingly outsourcing production abroad.

Consumer demand trends and dynamics

The French automotive market, a dynamic sector focused on the design, production and sale of passenger vehicles, reveals compelling trends revolving around consumer demand, changing market structures and government influences. Despite the strong presence of national brands in car sales, the industry was confronted with the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic and the strict rethis led to a significant, albeit recovering, drop in production volumes.

With environmental considerations gaining ground, electric and hybrid vehicles have surged ahead, accounting for almost 40% of registrations by 2022. Consumer reluctance towards electric vehicles, mainly due to high purchase costs, is a further obstacle for manufacturers.

Against a backdrop of economic recovery, the French automotive manufacturing sector finds itself at a crossroads. Export sales will account for a substantial share - almost 60% - of the sector's sales in 2022, even though production volumes have not yet fully returned to pre-crisis levels. This trend is underlined by the tendency for production to be outsourced beyond France's borders, leading to a decline in domestic manufacturing as imports, particularly from countries such as China, intensify.

In addition, demand for electric and hybrid cars has taken off, as evidenced by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 55%. Government incentives and legislative measures, including subsidies and future bans on combustion engines, are actively steering manufacturers and consumers towards cleaner automotive technologies.

The market structure, characterized by a duopoly with Renault and Stellantis at the helm, features high market concentration, with almost 55% market share in new passenger car registrations in August 2023. Changing consumer preferences towards environmentally-friendly vehicles continue to redefine the automotive landscape, despite the general preference for traditional passenger cars on the market.preference for traditional passenger cars on French roads, indicating a gradual but marked shift towards greener alternatives in the sector.

The balance of trade reflects a growing deficit, reaching between 15 and 17 billion euros by 2022 - the gap being mainly fuelled by a structural decline in domestic production alongside a peak in foreign production. The relocation of production units for the main French models to countries with competitive labor costs is a factor contributing to the rise of the automotive industry. The automotive market in France and around the world is a constantly evolving landscape.

The main players in the French automotive market

In this dynamic arena, several key players are emerging, each with a significant influence on market trends and consumer choices. Despite the multitude of brands and companies, the structure of the French market is particularly notable for its concentration around two industry titans.

  • The Renault Group, with its alliances with Nissan and Mitsubishi, ensures a significant presence not only in the French domestic market, but also on a global scale. The French government's stake in Renault reinforces the brand's status as a national heavyweight, while Dacia operates under its wing, extending its reach to diverse consumer segments.

  • Stellantis embodies a transnational force, born of the merger of PSA-Peugeot and FCA. Integrating brands such as Peugeot, Citroën, DS, Opel and Vauxhall, Stellantis has risen to the forefront, ranking fourth worldwide in terms of volume of cars sold and third in terms of sales. The group's strategic alliances and diverse brand portfolio make it a formidable competitor, challenging the established order both at home and abroad.

  • The French automotive sector also includes Renault Trucks, whose offering in the commercial vehicle segment is well known, even if it does not fall within the scope of this particular review. It is important to note that Renault Trucks is managed by Sweden's Volvo AB, indicating a blurring of national boundaries in the world of car manufacturing.

  • In a broader global context, Volkswagen, Toyota and General Motors are colossal mainstays, each with a rich heritage and influential role in shaping international automotive history. These global giants dominate significant market shares and drive innovation, further intensifying the competition that inherently benefits consumers through a variety of choices and advancements. With growing ecological awareness and technological advances, the French market has seen an unprecedented boom in clean-energy vehicles.

  • Tesla made a remarkable entry with its Model Y, signaling not only an entry into the top 10 best-selling vehicles in France, but also underlining the growing inclination for electric mobility solutions.

The industrial landscape bears witness to the resilience and adaptability of automakers. French players continue to exert a formidable force at national level, while remaining agile in the face of the changes and trends dictating global markets.

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Détail du contenu

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  • Nombre de pages : 30 pages
  • Format : Version digitale et PDF
  • Dernière mise à jour : 18/10/2023
Détail des mises à jour

Sommaire et extraits

1 Market overview

1.1 Definition and scope of the study

The automotive manufacturing market encompasses several activities, namely the design, manufacture and marketing of passenger vehicles.

In France, national brands continue to hold a strong grip on total car sales. However, national players have been hard hit by the Covid-19 crisis. In addition, the European Commission is exertingincreased pressure on pollutant emissions; the environmental targets set by Brussels for CO2 emissions pose real challenges for automakers in terms of sales of electric and hybrid vehicles. This type of vehicle has seen its market share increase exponentially in recent years, reaching almost 40% of registrations by 2022.

in the wake of the Covid crisis, production volumes by the various French players in the market have fallen sharply. What's more, the French market is highly concentrated, with two main players, the Renault group and Stellantis. An emerging trend is the increasing outsourcing of production to countries other than France. After an almost 30% drop in sales in 2020 and supply difficulties, particularly in semiconductors, in 2021 and 2022, the sector still saw growth of 13.4% in 2022, albeit still below the 2019 thresholds.

The sector's trade balance is increasingly in deficit, reaching 15.7 billion in 2022, with imports from China rising sharply in 2022, from 800 million to 2.7 billion. The sector looks set to continue growing in 2023, with a significant increase in sales for the first half of 2023, driven by higher car prices. However, the sector continues to face supply problems and strong regulatory constraints from decision-making bodies concerning pollution emitted by vehicles. Against this backdrop, industry players are under constant pressure to adapt.

1.2 World market: all-time record in 2022

global sales for the ** largest automakers rose by almost **% in ****, reaching an all-time high of €*,*** billion. It's clear from this graph that covid has come to a screeching halt in the industry. However, the sector's economic recovery has been very strong. The market has expanded, with average annual growth of *.*% between ...

1.3 Domestic market expansion

Sales in the motor vehicle construction sector rose by **.*% in ****. In ****, the sector's sales increased by almost **%, then gradually recovered in **** and ****.

it should be noted that nearly **% of the sector's sales in **** will come from exports

Sales - Domestic and export - Motor vehicle manufacturing (***) France, ****-****, € billion Source: ****

However, ...

1.4 Foreign trade: Record trade deficit

Between **** and ****, the value of imports rose by an average of *.*% per year, while exports grew by an average of just *.*%.

By ****, exports have risen by almost **%, driven by excellent results from the Stellantis Group.

foreign trade in automotive products (***) France, ****, Millions of euros Source: ****

france's foreign trade deficit in the ...

2 Demand analysis

2.1 Profile analysis: The French consumer

A strong national customer base for manufacturers

Car brands ranked by number of owners France, ****, in million units Source: ****

The graph above illustrates car registrations by brand. It shows the clear dominance of local manufacturers such as Renault, Peugeot and Citroën.

In particular, Renault was the most widespread brand in ...

2.2 Growing consumer demand for electric and hybrid cars

Registered vehicles, by energy type France, ****, in Source: CCFA In France, gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles continue to dominate the automotive landscape, however, hybrid vehicles are recording particularly remarkable growth. Between **** and ****, the share of new hybrid car registrations rose from *.*% to **%, and this upward trend looks set to continue in **** and ...

2.3 The impact of COVID-19 on the industry

The global pandemic has had a detrimental effect on the automotive industry, both in France and worldwide. This is due in particular to the reduction in road traffic as a result of containment measures. Because the evolution of the virus and the situation is unpredictable, uncertainty remains, and automakers can count ...

3 Market structure

3.1 Market structure

The market structure in France is highly concentrated and takes the form of a duopoly. Two groups dominate car manufacturing and sales, as listed below

Renault Renault is owned by the French government and includes other car brands such as Dacia ; Renault has partnerships with Nissan and Mitsubishi. The French group ...

3.2 French production outside France increased

In today's globalized world, car production rarely takes place in a single geographical location. Instead, companies use multiple sites to benefit from access to raw materials, labor and know-how. For example, of the ** production and assembly sites worldwide used by Renault, Stellantis (***) and Renault Trucks, including * in projects, only ** are located ...

3.3 Distribution

as of January *, ****, the main network, made up of branches, manufacturers and dealers, represents *,*** outlets, out of a total of **,*** outlets in France.

Sales networks in France for light vehicles at January *, **** France, ****, Units Source: ****

in order to maintain a high level of quality in sales and after-sales services, the distribution ...

4 Offer analysis

4.1 Passenger cars dominate production

The big picture

There are three main types of car on the market: standard passenger cars (***), hybrid cars and electric cars. As we saw in the previous section, the first category dominates.

Traffic

Fleet status by type France, ****-****, in thousands Type of car **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** Passenger cars ** *** ** *** ** *** ** *** ** *** ** *** ** *** ** *** ** *** ** *** Light commercial vehicles * *** * *** * *** * *** * *** * *** * *** * *** * *** * *** Heavy-duty vehicles *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** Total ** ...

4.2 Price and cost analysis

Prices and costs vary considerably depending on the car model. Different cars require different volumes of input, including raw materials, engineers and time spent on design and production. The figures we present below are therefore a representative sample, and should not be taken as representative of the market as a ...

4.3 Clean alternatives supported by the government

The French government is a powerful catalyst in the process of gradually switching from today's diesel and petrol cars to electric and hybrid cars. There are financial incentives for both consumers and producers looking to buy or manufacture a car. In particular, on May **, ****, Mr. Macron announced that the government would ...

5 Regulations

5.1 Regulatory framework

The automotive industry is subject to an extensive legislative framework based on rules and regulations issued by the European Commission. This scope includes

emissions: Since January *, ****, Regulation (***) ****/*** has been in force, settingCO* emissions performance requirements for ****, **** and ****, in line with the EU's Paris Agreement targets

-after lengthy negotiations with its member ...

Liste des graphiques

  • OBSERVATOIRE DES MOBILITÉS PARTAGÉES ET ÉLECTRIQUES (Ifop)
  • Les Français étaient de plus en plus sceptiques à l’égard des voitures électriques
  • Evolution du cours de l'action Renault et PSA pendant l'épidémie du Covid-19
  • Productions domestique et mondiale de voitures de tourisme par des groupes français
  • Evolution du nombre de salariés dans le secteur de la construction automobile
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Dernières actualités

Ligier se lance dans la voiture sans permis électrique haut de gamme - 11/04/2023
  • Nouveau modèle électrique : Myli Prix d'entrée de gamme de Myli : 12.499 euros (hors bonus de 900 euros)
  • Autonomie de Myli : 65 à 192 kilomètres
  • Prix de la finition la plus élevée de Myli : 18.799 euros
  • Immatriculations de voitures sans permis en France en 2019 : 13.400, en 2020 : 22.500
  • Objectif de production de Ligier : 40.000 véhicules par an d'ici deux ans (contre 30.000 aujourd'hui)
  •  Lieu de fabrication de Myli : Boufféré, Vendée, France
  • Nombre de salariés de l'entreprise Ligier : 420
  •  Chiffre d'affaires de Ligier en 2020 : 192 millions d'euros
Ligier dévoile Myli, sa voiture sans permis 100% électrique - 07/05/2023
  • Leader européen des voitures sans permis: Groupe Ligier
  • Premier modèle électrique de Ligier: Myli, disponible en mai Autonomie Myli: entre 63 et 192 km
  • Prix Myli: entre 12 500 et 17 100 euros
  • Nombre d'immatriculations de voitures sans permis en France en 2022: 22 500
  • Nombre d'immatriculations de voitures sans permis en France en 2019: 13 400
  • Chiffre d'affaires de Ligier en 2022: 192 millions d'euros (+9% sur un an)
  • Objectif de ventes Myli pour 2023: 2 000 exemplaires
  • Usine de production Myli: Boufféré, Vendée
Ineos va fabriquer un petit 4x4 électrique dans son usine de Moselle. - 31/05/2022
  • Jim Ratcliffe a décidé en 2017 d'investir 1 milliard d'euros pour lancer son propre véhicule tout-terrain, après la décision de Land Rover d'arrêter son Defender
  • Le groupe produit un grenadier électrique plus petit que les 4x4 actuels
  • Les modèles sont à destination du monde entier
  • Le Grenadier sera vendu entre 61.000 et 69.500 euros

Entreprises citées dans cette étude

Cette étude contient un panorama complet des entreprises du marché avec les derniers chiffres et actualités de chaque entreprise :

Ligier Groupe
Ineos Grenadier
Plastic Omnium Groupe
Stellantis (Groupe PSA et Fiat)
PSA Peugeot Citroen
Renault Groupe

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Ajouts et mises à jour

  • 25/07/2023 - Mise à jour des données financières de l'entreprise PSA Peugeot Citroen
  • 25/07/2023 - Mise à jour des données financières de l'entreprise Renault Groupe
  • 25/07/2023 - Mise à jour des données financières de l'entreprise Plastic Omnium Groupe
  • 04/07/2023 - Ajout des informations de l'entreprise Renault Groupe
  • 06/03/2023 - Ajout des informations de l'entreprise PSA Peugeot Citroen
  • 06/03/2023 - Ajout des informations de l'entreprise Stellantis (Groupe PSA et Fiat)
  • 21/02/2023 - Mise à jour des données financières de l'entreprise Plastic Omnium Groupe

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