In Q4 2024, household consumption of vehicles measured in the national accounts was approximately 4% lower than at the end of 2019. Purchases, of course, fell sharply during the health crisis and although they recovered between late 2022 and late 2023, they have stagnated or even declined slightly since then. INSEE’s monthly consumer confidence survey (“CAMME” survey) asks households about their intentions to buy a car in the course of the year. The share of households planning to buy a car within the next 12 months is generally correlated with vehicle consumption measured in the national accounts. Purchasing intentions peaked in early 2024 but have since slipped back. The survey is able to break down this change by household category: the decline in purchasing intentions in 2024 was more pronounced for the youngest households (traditionally more cyclical) and those living in an urban centre. However, it affects households relatively uniformly according to standard of living, whereas past fluctuations were mainly due to wealthy households...