The May edition of Automotive World’s global light vehicle sales forecast has slightly revised up prior estimates for 2026
Global light vehicle demand fell for the fourth successive month in April, with the top 20 markets down 3.1% year-on-year. Despite this, Automotive World has upgraded its latest 2026 forecast by 0.1pts to almost 88.70 million units, though that still represents a decline of 1.1% on 2025.
As before, volume downturns in China and the US are having the greatest impact. China shed nearly 380,000 units in April as post-subsidy demand cooled sharply, while the US lost 90,000 units amid higher average prices and growing strain in the auto finance sector. The expected annual totals for both currently remain unchanged.
Elsewhere, there are signs of resilience. The forecast for India has been raised to 5.18 million, up 4.4%, as tax reform from September 2025 is expected to keep fuelling demand across the first nine months of 2026. Light vehicle demand outside the top markets has also improved, gaining 0.3pts and reducing the year-on-year decline to 14.18 million units, a 0.8% drop from 2025.
For a full breakdown of how the world’s major vehicle markets are performing, read the May edition of Automotive World’s light vehicle sales forecast.
