German car industry sceptical about EV purchase incentive, calls for lower charging costs

A new round of purchase incentives for electric vehicles planned by the prospective next German government has aroused scepticism among the country’s car industry, newspaper Die Welt reported. “We are against purchase incentives,” said BMW CEO Oliver Zipse, arguing that such a scheme could distort the market and would be difficult to phase out once introduced. After Germany previously cut purchase support, in the wake of the country’s debt brake ruling in late 2023, the disruption of the car market resulted in severe challenges for carmakers that were suddenly faced with plummeting sales.