Contrary to almost all other European countries, the Belgian bicycle market is performing very well. After the 2022 peak, the market bounced back to a pre-pandemic level, and has not been affected by the sustained decline seen in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. In 2025, the Belgian market even experienced a 7.1% increase to 578,737 units in total. What made this Belgian miracle?

Pragma Industries, known for its pioneering technology in hydrogen-powered bicycles, has filed for liquidation. This move, while not entirely unpredictable given the company's admitted difficulties last year, brings an abrupt end to more than two decades of work in the fuel-cell mobility sector.

Three years of declining business performance has not left the Taiwanese industry unscathed. After the sales peak in 2022, the industry waited for better days, citing excess inventory as the reason for the downturn. The Taipei Cycle Show 2026 made clear that many companies cannot wait any longer. "Nobody is able to wait any longer after three years of standstill," said Astro-Tech president Samuel Hu.

Riese & Müller, German premium e-bike manufacturer, has announced its withdrawal from the United States market, choosing to "reconcentrate its resources" on developing its European sales and dealer network. Despite the recent positive policy developments for the US bicycle industry, the overall volatility of the nation's import market appears to have claimed another victim.

Sea Otter Classic 2026 caught the e-bike vibe that Europe experienced some years ago. The United States had always lagged in this market, but at the Sea Otter Classic this weekend, it looks like the US market has finally awoken and stepped on board with all things electric.

Ask ten people in a bike brand how profitable their assortment is, and you will get ten different answers. Ask the product manager and she will point to margin per unit. Ask the supply chain lead and he will talk about complexity cost. Ask the retailer, and the conversation shifts entirely to sell-through and floor turns. Everyone is right. Everyone is also looking at a different piece of the value chain. And because no one has agreed on a shared picture, the product line keeps growing — SKU by SKU, season by season — until it takes an AI chatbot to explain the difference between two models to a confused customer at home.