b"Dear Partners,The \x1frst half of 2025 has seen signi\x1fcant changes in theAdditionally, demand for EVswhile soft throughout the automotive industry, primarily driven by the new tari\x1esyearmay increase before the end of the tax subsidy but announced on April 2nd. These tari\x1es have sent ripplesdoesnt look promising after September 30th, 2025. The through the industry, prompting car makers, suppliers,cancellation of further subsidies on charging networks will and parts distributors to adapt and strategize to mitigatelikely slow that expansion down, further dampening car their impact. The airwaves were buzzing with speculationbuyers willingness to switch to electric vehicles. three months ago, but now, as we assess the reality on the ground, it's clear that the landscape has shifted. Let's delveFor us in the Aftermarket, this is a familiar scenario. An into the tangible impacts we've observed so far.environment with enough unknowns to make vehicle owners hold on to their cars and invest in proper New Light Vehicle Registrationsmaintenance and repair, even with costs going up due to tari\x1e and currency impacts.Total new light vehicle registrations in Q2 were up by 2.3%.Being less impacted than new car dealerships, this is anYear-to-date registrations were up by 3.2%.opportunity to gain Aftermarket share throughVehicles made in Europe were down by 2.1% in Q2 andconsistency, \x1dexibility, and excellence in performance. We down by 2.9% for the year.will surely do our part by providing you with the best \x1fllThe EV share of the new vehicle market was aroundrate, product quality, competitive pricing, and delivery 7.5%, down by 0.5% from the previous year.consistency! Aftermarket Impact Wishing you a successful second half of 2025! While we have all learned to accept tari\x1e unpredictabilityYours, as a new variable in our business dealings, the potential impact on the Aftermarket for the remainder of the year is part of many conversations. Most importantly, we expect continued solid demand for maintenance and repair driven by vehicle owners reluctance to buy in an environment that is expected to see car pricing go upThomas Beer between 10% and 20% in the coming months.CEO"