Global EV Sales Reach Record Over 17 Million in 2024

Fri Jan 24 2025
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Key points

  • Sales in China jumped 36.5pc
  • Norway has highest EV market share in Europe
  • China has filed a complaint at the WTO over EU’s tariff decision

ISLAMABAD: Global sales of fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles rose by a quarter last year to more than 17 million cars, helped by a fourth consecutive month of record sales in December as China continued to grow and Europe stabilised, Western media reported.

Reuters news agency cited a research firm Rho Motion as saying, “Incentives and emission targets pushed EV sales in China as well as aided Britain in overtaking Germany as Europe’s biggest battery-electric market in 2024.”

International sales of fully electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids rose 25.6 per cent year-on-year to 1.9 million in December, although slowing for a second consecutive month, Reuters reported.

Sales in China jumped 36.5 per cent to 1.3 million vehicles in December, and totalled 11 million for the whole of 2024.

Similarly, in the United States and Canada, EV sales rose 8.8 per cent to 0.19 million in December, while Europe reported sales of 0.31 million, up 0.7 per cent from the same month of 2023.

AFP cited ACEA data that overall car sales edged 0.9 per cent higher in Europe — including Britain, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, to just shy of 13 million.

Norway continued to have the highest EV market share, accounting for about nine out of 10 new vehicles sold last year, AFP reported.

Geopolitics and EV industry

China faced a backlash in 2024 as it moved to expand EV sales overseas, with the US, Canada and EU unveiling steep tariffs to stop a flood of cheap electric vehicles into their markets.

China argues that its EV subsidies are similar to those of other countries and that sales of electric vehicles help with climate change. China has filed a complaint at the World Trade Organization over the EU’s tariff decision, according to VOA.

Geopolitical competition is encouraging the clean energy transition, with nations competing on legislation and investment. The global race to lead in the energy transition has seen significant investments in infrastructure, particularly by the United States, the European Union, and China, according to an article published by World Economic Forum.

According to the article, the increasing demand for and limited supply of critical minerals could hamper this progress. It said that it is necessary to cooperate for global collective effort.

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