Electric vehicles global sales jump 39% in 2020, 3.1 million units sold

Amid the slump in passenger car market sales in 2020, electric cars are showing signs of growth. Global electric vehicle sales in 2020 increased 39% year-on-year to 3.1 million units, as the overall passenger car market decreased by 14%. Research firm Canalys predicts that the number will rise in the next few years with 30 million electric cars sold in 2028. Electric cars are also expected to account for nearly half of all passenger cars sold globally by 2030.

Travel restrictions and restrictions related to COVID-19 affected the auto industry terribly in the first half of 2020, and again in some parts of the world in late 2020. Car sales fell by 14 percent in 2020, to 66.5 million cars. . , The lowest number of annual sales in nearly a decade. But at 3.1 million units, the share of electric cars sold in the total passenger car market grew to 4.5%, a historic year for electric cars.

In a tough 2020 for the automotive industry, the strong demand for EVs has been a real bright spot. This will continue around the world in 2021 and beyond, despite the economically adverse conditions," says Chris Jones, Chief Analyst for automotive at Canalys. Electric vehicles represented almost 5 percent of all new car sales in 2020. EVs are forecast to reach over 7 percent of new car sales worldwide in 2021, a further 66 percent growth, to exceed 5 million units sold.

Approximately 1.3 million EVs were sold in both China and Europe in 2020, four times the EV sales in the US. "EV sales in the US represented just 2.4 percent of new cars sold there, despite it being home to Tesla, the world's leading EV manufacturer. Even policies from a more supportive US gove
ment won't change things ove
ight," adds Jones.

EV sales will continue to grow throughout the decade, with Canalys forecasting that EVs will represent 48 percent of all new cars sold in 2030. "Rapid growth will continue as more electric vehicles launch and gove
ments set and maintain policies to stimulate EV production and sales. Reducing 'range anxiety' with increases in performance and charging infrastructure will be vital to entice more buyers," says Sandy Fitzpatrick, VP at Canalys.

"The automotive industry is currently facing crippling semiconductor shortages, so managing future supply chains and production systems to cope with the growth will be made or break for any electric vehicle strategies".

Canalys includes electric vehicles powered by a battery and hybrid vehicles connected with electricity in EVs, while light commercial vehicles are excluded from passenger cars.

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