On January 14, 2025, according to Reuters, the latest data released showed that global sales of pure electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles increased by a quarter in 2024, with a total of more than 17 million vehicles. This significant growth was mainly due to the continued growth of the Chinese economy and the stabilization of the European economy. At the same time, sales in December also set a new record for the fourth consecutive month.
Data from Rho Motion showed that in December 2024, global sales of pure electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles increased by 25.6% year-on-year to 1.9 million units, even though the growth rate slowed for the second consecutive month.
In terms of regions, in the Chinese market, electric vehicle sales in December 2024 jumped 36.5% year-on-year to 1.3 million units, and 11 million units for the whole year of 2024; in December 2024, electric vehicle sales in the United States and Canada increased year-on-year. Electric vehicle sales in Europe were 310,000 units, up 0.7% year-on-year, while in other parts of the world, electric vehicle sales increased by 26.4% year-on-year.
Rho Motion said incentives and carbon emissions targets have driven growth in electric vehicle sales in China and helped the UK overtake Germany as Europe's largest pure electric vehicle market by 2024.
Electric car makers see 2025 as a year of reform as China's electric car sales growth slows, Europe sets new carbon emissions targets and the next U.S. President Donald Trump threatens to change U.S. policy.
“Germany’s elimination of electric vehicle subsidies had a devastating effect on the entire European market, and we could see the same thing if the U.S. follows suit,” Rho Motion said in a report.
The European Union officially imposed tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles at the end of October. Commenting on the November electric vehicle data, Charles Lester, data manager at Rho Motion, told Reuters that there had been no significant decline in sales of major Chinese-made electric models in the European Union.
Automakers facing tougher EU 2025 carbon emissions rules are planning to band together to buy carbon credits from electric car makers such as Tesla and Polestar to avoid huge fines, an EU filing showed last week. .
Meanwhile, China last week extended subsidies for car trade-ins until 2025 as part of a consumer trade-in program in an effort to boost adoption of electric vehicles as it revive economic growth.
