PARIS (Reuters) - French automaker Renault (EPA:RENA) said on Thursday that sales grew by 1.3% in 2024, with a strong fourth quarter driven by new launches helping to offset weak demand earlier in the year.

Sales growth, however, slowed sharply from the 9% rise recorded in 2023, as the global auto sector faced a challenging year with inflation weighing on consumer appetite for new vehicles and surplus production in China flooding the market.

Top European car maker Volkswagen (ETR:VOWG_p) said on Tuesday its sales fell 2.3% last year as it struggled to cut costs at home and fight a price war in China, its biggest market.

Renault, which mainly sells in Europe, said it sold 2.26 million vehicles, with a growing share made up of hybrids and electric vehicles that helped it lift sales by 6.1% in the fourth quarter.

Overall, 9% of the group's European sales were electric vehicles, rising to 12% in the fourth quarter.

For the Renault brand, which accounts for more than two-thirds of group sales, electric vehicles made up 16% of European volumes in the fourth quarter, Fabrice Cambolive, CEO of the Renault brand told reporters.

Almost 20% of Renault's sales this year will need to be electric vehicles to comply with tough new European targets on carbon emissions.

The company reports 2024 financial results on Feb. 20.