Uneven recovery: Asia powers 2025 auto market growth Global vehicle production and sales rose in 2025, with output reaching 96.4 million units and sales 99.8 million units, as Asia drove much of the growth and China remained the world's largest vehicle market, according to a report presented in Beijing on Thursday. Data released by the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA) showed that global vehicle production rose 3.9 percent year-on-year in 2025, while sales increased 4.7 percent. The recovery, however, remained uneven, with Europe and other established auto markets facing weak demand, policy uncertainty and high transition costs, while Asia and other emerging industrial centers provided the main momentum. Shailesh Chandra, president of OICA, said the auto industry is facing growing pressure from technological shifts, geopolitical tensions and diverging policy approaches, underscoring the importance of international cooperation. François Roudier, secretary-general of OICA, said the figures also reflected a broader shift in industrial competitiveness. Asia remained the main driver of global growth. Production in the Asia-Pacific region rose 7.6 percent to 59.2 million vehicles in 2025, accounting for more than 61 percent of global output. Sales across Asia, Oceania and the Middle East rose 7.1 percent to 55.02 million units, underscoring the region's growing weight on both the production and demand sides. China was at the center of that shift. Vehicle production reached 34.5 million units in 2025, while new energy vehicle output rose 29 percent to 16.63 million units. India also emerged as a major source of growth, while Japan remained a key manufacturing base. Europe, by contrast, remained broadly flat. Regional production slipped 0.8 percent to 17.2 million vehicles, while sales edged down 0.4 percent to 18.63 million. Germany remained the region's largest production base but declines in the United Kingdom and Italy underscored continued pressure in parts