In the summer of 2025, registrations of industrial vehicles in Italy reflected a contrasting picture, with growth in July offset by a decline in August, leaving the overall balance for the first eight months of the year in negative territory. According to the Unrae bulletin, based on figures from the Ministry of Transport, industrial vehicles with a gross mass above 3.5 tonnes increased by 9.7% in July compared with the same month in 2024, with 2,856 units registered against 2,604 a year earlier.
The light segment between 3.51 and 6 tonnes posted a sharp rise of 53.9%, climbing from 89 to 137 units. Vehicles in the 6.01 to 15.99-tonne range, however, fell by 12.4%, with 296 registrations against 338 in 2024. The heaviest vehicles above 16 tonnes performed better, reaching 2,423 units, up 11.3%. Within this category, rigid trucks rose by 19.0% with 1,071 registrations, while tractor units posted a more modest gain of 5.9%, reaching 1,352 units.
In August, the trend reversed. Total registrations stood at 1,308, down 3.3% from 1,352 in the same month of 2024. The positive momentum continued in the 3.51 to 6-tonne range, up 47.7% from 44 to 65 units, and in the 6.01 to 15.99-tonne category, up 5.2% from 154 to 162 units. By contrast, vehicles above 16 tonnes fell by 6.3%, slipping from 1,154 to 1,081 units. Within this segment, rigid trucks climbed to 513 registrations, an increase of 7.8%, while tractor units suffered a sharp decline of 16.2%, dropping to 568 units.
Across the first eight months of 2025, the market recorded 18,644 new registrations, a fall of 10.4% compared with 20,798 in the January to August period of 2024. The downturn was particularly evident in the category above 16 tonnes, which contracted by 10.8% to 15,799 units, down from 17,705 a year earlier.
Commenting on the overall picture, Paolo A. Starace, president of Unrae’s Industrial Vehicles section, noted that the end-August figures confirm a significant contraction in the sector, coupled with the absence of government support measures in the short to medium term. Starace stressed that the industry, while strategic for the national economy, remains low on the political agenda, and pointed out that expectations of potential extraordinary incentives for fleet renewal have further curbed demand.
Looking ahead to the new budget law, the association is calling for concrete measures to restore business confidence, in a context marked by stringent European decarbonisation targets and the risk of sanctions. According to Starace, the current regulatory framework could undermine the competitiveness of European heavy-vehicle manufacturers compared with non-European rivals.
