Electric car sales surge 30% globally, China leads

Despite what some media outlets would like you to believe, the start of 2025 shows a clear trend: electric cars are becoming more popular worldwide. Sales of both fully electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids jumped by 30% in the first two months of the year. This means 2.4 million of these cars were sold around the world in just under 60 days.

Unsurprisingly, China is right at the front of this growth. Sales there increased by 35%, reaching 1.4 million units. This massive jump shows that Chinese consumers are not holding back, and embracing EVs at a rapid pace. The increase in February alone was a remarkable 76% compared to the previous year. The Chinese New Year most likely influenced this spike, but the overall trend is undeniable. Fully electric car sales in China rose by 46%, while plug-in hybrid sales increased by 22%. These numbers show a strong shift towards fully electric vehicles in the Chinese market.

North America is also seeing a surge in EV sales. The combined sales in the United States, Canada, and Mexico are up by 20%. In Mexico, sales more than doubled, largely thanks to the arrival of more affordable Chinese electric car models. In the US, EV and PHEV sales grew by a substantial 28%. This increase might be partly attributed to consumers trying to take advantage of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit before it potentially goes up in smoke.

Europe is also contributing to global EV growth, with sales up by 29%. Interestingly, plug-in hybrid sales in Europe have only seen a modest increase of 2%. In France, PHEV sales actually dropped dramatically by 48% after the government introduced a weight tax on these vehicles. This is the clearest evidence yet that government policies can have a significant impact on consumer choices.

"It's been a solid start to the year for EV sales globally with a 50% bump in February compared to the previous year," said RhoMotion data manager Charles Lester. He also noted that China continues to be a major driver of this growth, with companies like BYD expanding both domestically and internationally. Even with high tariffs, BYD's growth doesn't seem to be slowing down.

As hard as some media will try to tell us otherwise - the numbers just can't lie. The global electric car market is clearly on an upward trajectory. With strong growth in major markets like China, the US, and Europe, EVs are becoming increasingly common on roads worldwide. Tesla shareholders probably wish their company was part of the wider trend, but once the dust settles, everything will go back to business as usual. Although, there will be a lot of catching up to do.

Source